Why, according to Greek folklore, might a person be healed through the wearing of a dead Amphisbaena?

zbeckabee

I'm pretty sure I've NOT answered the question. Wearing a dead amphisbaena or its skin would cure arthritis chilblains - wearing the skin of an amphisbaena will reduce this swelling of the hands caused by cold. The Amphisbaena is a Greek serpent with two heads and eyes that glow like candles. It has a head at each end of its body. This is how it got its name which means "goes both ways" in Greek. It is also called the "mother of ants", because it feeds on ants. If it is chopped in half, the two parts will join again. The medical properties of the Amphisbaena were recorded by Pliny. The wearing of a live Amphisbaena is a supposed safeguard in pregnancy. The wearing of a dead one is a remedy for rheumatism. Medieval bestiaries also document the Amphisbaena as a two-headed lizard, and even a two-headed serpent-like fowl. http://www.pantheon.org/articles/a/amphisbaena.html According to Greek mythology, the mythological amphisbaena was spawned from the blood that dripped from the Gorgon Medusa's head as Perseus flew over the Libyan Desert with it in his hand. Cato's army then encountered it along with other serpents on the march. Amphisbaenae fed off of the corpses left behind. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphivena#Folk_medicine http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Reference_desk/Archives/Science/2007_October_25 Nov 06 08, 6:31 AM

BRY2K

I'm pretty sure that you ARE on the right track. My sources quote the wearing of Amphisbaena as a remedy for rheumatism....so as far as I can tell: YOU NAILED IT!! Excellent work! Nov 06 08, 6:43 AM