(image taken from http://wisecreatures.blogspot.com/

Here comes the sweetness of research: the Rod of Asclepius and The Caduceus have nothing in common after all. And so this is why you have to research things before working on scientific-medical conceptual illustration assignment (and wow, I can't believe how many people in creative industry just keep copy-pasting each others mistakes without a proper research constantly mixing the two):

"The rod of Asclepius—a serpent coiled around a staff–is a symbol from ancient Greek mythology which represents the physician’s art. <...> The Caduceus was carried by Hermes/Mercury, the god of merchants <...> In the United States the two rods have become confused because of a military mix-up in the early twentieth century (when a stubborn medical officer refused to listen to his subordinates and ordered the caduceus to be adopted as the symbol of the U.S. Medical Corps). " -http://ferrebeekeeper.wordpress.com/2013/02/12/the-rod-of-asclepius-and-the-caduceus/.

Ok, and so back to work now: two scientific illustration assignments for January already.
Happy geeky Holidays everyone!