Kos Asklepieion

Located 4 km southeast of Kos Town, beyond Platani village, the Asklepieion is an ancient medical center that was built in the first half of the third century BC to honor the god Asklepios, god of health and medicine; it was dedicated to Hippocrates, the renowned ancient Greek physician; the characteristic symbol of this institution was a snake, which the Greeks revered for its curative herb-selection abilities; the symbol is still visible today. The doctors who worked at this hospital were also priests, and there was a prayer sanctuary for anyone who desired to pray.