Moses prayed to God, who told Moses, 'Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he seeth it, shall live.' [Numbers 21: 4-9].

This scene was 1st (or perhaps best) depicted in a panel painted by Michaelangelo 20 years previously {see below}. Netushan is also mentioned in 2 Kings 18:4, the Gospel of John 3:14-16 and was the subject of a famous sermon by Charles Spurgeon in 1857: "The Mysteries of the Brazen Serpent".

Plague of 1528. This was a direct consequence of the sack of Rome in 1527 by mutinous troops of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.

Nehushtan (Hebrew) is the name given to the bronze or brass serpent on a pole. This was first described in the Book of Numbers & is also described in the Gospel of John.

This imagery was painted by Michaelangelo, in 1508, as a panel of the Sistene Chapel. Although the crucifixion of Christ was not depicted by Michaelangelo, he did paint the "Snake Tempting Eve" as another panel. Apparently snake related themes were very common in ancient and medieval times and there were snake cults during both eras.