small head of Hygieia goddess of health and wellbeing

Goddess of health and wellbeing, cleanliness, and sanitation.

She was the daughter of Asklepios, and grand daughter of Apollo. Her name gives us our word hygiene. While her father handled active treatments and cures, her role was keeping disease away. Her focus was on the maintenance of a healthy life. Along with Apollo, Asklepios and Panacea, she is invoked in the Hippocratic Oath. Among her sisters were Panacea, goddess of cures, Iaso, goddess of recovery, and Aceso, goddess of healing process.

The original marble head, on display in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens, was found in the Temple of Apollo in Tegea in the central Peloponnese. She is probably the work of the 4th century BCE sculptor Skopas.

Full statues of Hygieia, such as the one in the Hermitage, are shown holding a serpent, which was a symbol associated with Asklepios also. The stemmed cup with serpent coiling around its base has become a universal emblem of pharmacy and pharmacology.

The material is keramin, a heavy, durable plaster polymer compound, with a light ochre finish applied by hand. There may, therefore, be a slight variation in colour from piece to piece. Bases are made of solid dark grey or black marble.

Made in Greece in the workshop of the Semitekolo family with whom It's All Greek is proud to have been working since 1999, and who produce It's All Greek's bedrock bronze collection.