Serpent, Rochester Bestiary, c.1230

The serpent embodies three key symbolic natures, each offering spiritual lessons.

First Nature: as a serpent ages, its sight dims. To renew itself, it fasts and then squeezes through a narrow rock crevice to shed its old skin. This process symbolises the need for humans to shed their old ways through spiritual struggles and seek Christ, the spiritual rock and the narrow gate.

Second Nature: when the serpent drinks from a river, it first purges its poison into a pit. Similarly, when approaching divine teachings or seeking spiritual nourishment, humans must rid themselves of earthly and evil desires, cleansing their inner selves before partaking in holy wisdom.

Third Nature: a serpent fears a naked man but attacks a clothed one, reflecting the story of Adam: when he was spiritually naked in paradise, the serpent (Devil) could not harm him. Clothed in mortality after the fall, Adam became vulnerable to attack. This teaches that if we cling to our mortal weaknesses, we are susceptible to evil. However, if we shed our garments of sin and worldly powers, the serpent cannot prevail against us.

Additionally, serpents have various traits and behaviours such as using fennel to improve their vision and moving by their ribs and scales, which act as legs. They leave a moist trail and have a unique, rapidly flicking tongue. Living long lives, serpents periodically rejuvenate by shedding their old skin. Fascinatingly, lore suggests that serpents may be born from the marrow of dead men’s spines, linking them symbolically to death and rebirth. This intricate imagery serves as a reminder of the cycle of life, renewal, and the importance of spiritual vigilance.

The serpent was commonly associated with the Devil, sin and temptation, drawing from the Biblical story of the Garden of Eden where the serpent tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. This act led to the fall of man, making the serpent a primary symbol of deception, cunning and moral corruption. It was often depicted as embodiments of various sins and vices, such as envy, lust and deceit. Its slithering movement, venom and cunning nature were used as metaphors for these moral failings.

The serpent was also seen as a harbinger of death and destruction, echoing ancient fears of venomous snakes and their deadly bites. In this view, the serpent was a reminder of humanity's vulnerability and the ever-present threat of spiritual death. Despite these negative associations, serpents could also symbolise wisdom and the potential for renewal and transformation. This duality stemmed from their ability to shed their skin, which was seen as a metaphor for spiritual rebirth and repentance.

In Christian symbolism, the image of Christ trampling the serpent or crushing its head became a powerful motif representing Christ's victory over sin, death and the Devil. This imagery derives from the prophecy in Genesis 3:15[1], where it is foretold that the seed of the woman (interpreted as Christ) would crush the serpent's head. The serpent also had associations with healing, most notably seen in the story of Moses lifting a bronze serpent on a pole to heal the Israelites from snake bites (Numbers 21:8-9)[2]. This story was interpreted allegorically in Christianity as a prefiguration of Christ's crucifixion, which brought spiritual healing to humanity.

Serpens tres habet naturas. Prima eius na-
tura hec est. cum senuerit caligant oculi
eius. Et cum voluerit novus fieri; abstinet se
et ieiunat multis diebus. donec pellis eius relaxetur.
et querit angustam rimam in petra. et intrat

The serpent has three natures. Its first nature is this: when it grows old, its sight grows dim. When it wants to regenerate, it abstains from food and fasts for many days until its skin loosens. It then seeks a narrow crack in a rock and enters it.

in eam. et contribulat se. et deponit veterem pel-
lem. Et nos per multam tribulationem deponamus
veterem indumentum. et queramus spiritualem petram christum.
et angustam fissuram. id est angustam portam.
Secunda eius natura est; cum venerit ad flumen bibere
aquam. non portat secum venenum sinum. sed in fovea
dimittit illud. Et nos cum in collectam venimus;
aquam vivam atque sempiternam haurientes; audire
divinum sermonem in ecclesia; debemus abicere a nobis
venenum. id est. terrenas et malas concupiscentias;
Tertia natura eius est; si viderit hominem nudum;
timet eum. si viderit vestitum; exilit in eum. Sic
et nos spiritualiter intelligamus. quia primus homo adam
quamdiu fuit nudus in paradiso; non prevaluit serpens exi-
lire in eum. Sed postquam tunica est. indutus. idest mortali-
tate corporis; tunc exilivit in eum serpens; Si habes ergo
in te mortalem vestem id est veterem hominem. et invete-
ratus fueris dierum malorum; exilit in te serpens. Si autem
expolies te indumento principum et potestatum huius seculi

It coils up inside and sheds its old skin. Similarly, we should shed our old garments through great tribulation and seek the spiritual rock, Christ, and the narrow fissure, that is, the narrow gate. Its second nature is this: when it comes to a river to drink water, it does not bring along its poison. Instead, it discharges it into a pit. Similarly, when we come to a gathering to drink the living, eternal water and to hear the divine teachings in the church, we should rid ourselves of our poison, that is, earthly and evil desires. Its third nature is this: if the serpent sees a naked man, it fears him but if it sees a clothed one, it attacks him. Thus, we should understand spiritually that when the first man, Adam, was naked in paradise, the serpent could not prevail against him. When Adam was clothed, that is, once he had taken on the mortality of the body, then the serpent attacked him. Therefore, if you are clad in the mortal garment within yourself, that is, your former self, and you have grown old in evil days, the serpent will attack you. If you are unclad in the garments of princes and rid yourself of the power of the darkness of this world,

tenebrarum; tunc non poterit exilire in te ser-
pens id est diabolus. Serpens quoque pastu feniculi cecita-
tem expellit receptam. Itaque ubi oculos sibi ob-
duci senserit; nota remedia petit nec fraudatur
effectu. Testudo visceribus pasta serpentis. cum
venenum adverterit sibi serpere; organo[3] medici-
nam sue salutis exercet. Ieiuni hominis sputum
serpens si gustaverit; moritur. Dicit plinius quod
si serpentis capud etiam cum duobus digitis eva-
serit; nichilominus vivit. Unde et totum corpus obi-
cit pro capite ferientibus. Serpentibus universis he-
bes est visus; et raro ante se aspiciunt. Nec frus-
tra. cum oculos non infronte; set in temporibus
habeant. adeo ut cicius audiant quam aspiciant.
Nullum animal cum tanta celeritate linguam
movet; ut serpens. adeo ut triplicem linguam habere
videatur; cum una sit. Serpentium humida sunt
corpora. adeo ut quaque eant; viam humore

then the serpent, that is, the Devil, will not be able to attack you. The serpent is also able to expel the blindness caused by eating fennel. When it feels its sight blurring, it seeks its own remedies and knows that they will be effective. A tortoise, when it has swallowed the serpent’s entrails and realised that the venom is spreading through its body, cures itself with oregano. If the serpent tastes the spittle of a fasting man, it dies. Pliny says that if the head of a serpent comes off the neck even by two fingers , it keeps living. Hence, it exposes its whole body to danger just to protect its head. The serpent has a very weak sense of sight: seldom can it see what is ahead. This is not without reason: since the eyes are not on the forehead but rather on the temples of the head, the serpent’s hearing is better than its sight. No animal flicks its tongue as swiftly as a serpent, so much so that it seems to have a triple tongue, although it actually has only one.

The serpent has a humid body, so that wherever it goes, it marks its path with moisture.

designent. Vestigia serpentium sunt talia ut
compedibus carere videantur. Costarum et squamarum
nisibus repunt. quas a summo gutture usque ad
imum alvum parili modo dispositas habent. Squa-
mis enim quasi unguibus costis quasi cruribus inni-
tuntur. Serpentes diu vivere dicuntur. adeo
ut deposita veteri tunica; senectutem deponere
atque in iuventutem redire perhibeantur. Tunice
serpentium ex uvie vocantur. eoquod hiis quando
senescunt sese exuunt. Dicuntur autem exuvie et
induvie; quia exuuntur et induuntur. Pitagoras
dicit de medulla hominis mortui que in spina
est; serpentem creari. Quod etiam ovidius in methaph-
libris commemorat dicens. Sunt qui cum clauso putre-
facta spina sepulcro mutari credant humanas
angue medullas. Et bene ut sicut per serpentem
mors hominis. ita per hominis mortem serpens
nascatur.

The prints left by the serpent are such that they seem to lack feet. They move by means of their ribs and scales, which are equally arranged from the top of their throat to the bottom of their belly. Scales serve as claws and ribs as legs. The serpent is said to live for a long time, so much so that after shedding its old skin, it lays aside its old age and rejuvenates. The skin of the serpent is called exŭvĭae[5], for they shed it, exŭĕre, when they grow old. With regard to clothing, the word indŭĕre means to put on clothes whereas exŭĕre means to take off clothes. Pythagoras says that a serpent is created from the marrow of a dead man, which is found in the spine. Ovid also mentions it in his Metamorphoses, saying that some believe that when a putrefied spine has rotted in a tomb, human marrow turns into a serpent. Thus, just as a serpent causes death, so too does the death of a man create a serpent.

Further Reading

David Badke, The Bestiary Blog: Animals in the Middle Ages, Snake, November 6 2023, https://bestiary.ca/beasts/beast264.htm

Josh Goldenberg (BA 2012) and Matt Shanahan (BA 2014, Logeion, November 2022, https://logeion.uchicago.edu/

Castiglioni, L. and Mariotti, S. (1996). Vocabolario della Lingua Latina: Latino-Italiano Italiano-Latino. Terza Edizione. Loescher Torino

Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., Wikipedia: The Elephant, 28 November 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant

Matthews, J. and Matthews C., (2010), The Element Encyclopedia of Magical Creatures, HarperCollins UK, London

Curley, M. J., Physiologus: A Medieval Book of Nature Lore (University of Chicago edition 2009)

Rackham, H., M.A., Pliny Natural History Volume III, Libri VIII-XI (London: William Heinemann Ltd, 1949)

Collins, A. H., M.A., Symbolism of Animals and Birds (New York: McBride, Nast & Company, 1913)

Henderson, C., The Book of Barely Imagined Beings (London: University of Chicago Press, 2013)

White, T. H., The Bestiary: A Book of Beasts (New York: G.P Putnam’s Sons, 1960)

Barney, S. A., Lewis, W. J., Beach A., Berghof O., The Etymologies of Isidore of Seville (New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006)

Endnotes

[1] Genesis NKJV 3:15: "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel."

[2] Numbers NKJV 21:8-9: "Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live’. So Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived."

[3] Ŏrīgănum means oregano

[4] The word dĭgĭtus, which means finger in English, was also a unit of length that the Ancient Romans used. One dĭgĭtus was the sixteenth part of one foot and amounted to about 18mm.

[5] Exŭvĭae meant garments, clothes, spoils of war but also skin (of animals) in Latin