Gheschiedenissen Israels in de Woestyne

The scene shows the Israelite camp besieged by venomous snakes, with people suffering and dying on the ground. In the center, a bronze serpent is hoisted onto a tall wooden pole; Moses points to it with his rod, offering a miraculous cure to those who gaze upon it. To the right, Aaron stands in priestly garments including the breastplate, while the background is filled with the tents of the twelve tribes.

In the Western esoteric tradition, the Brazen Serpent (Nehushtan) is a potent symbol of alchemical transformation and the 'physician's' power to turn poison into medicine, a concept central to Paracelsian thought. It was frequently adopted into alchemical iconography, such as in the works of Michael Maier and Nicolas Flamel, where the serpent fixed to the cross or pole represents the stabilization of volatile Mercury.