Ouroboros

The ouroboros or uroboros (/ˌjʊərəˈbɒrəs/;^[2] /ˌʊərəˈbɒrəs/^[3]) is an ancient symbol depicting a snake or dragon^[4] eating its own tail. The ouroboros entered Western tradition via ancient Egyptian iconography and the Greek magical tradition. It was adopted as a symbol in Gnosticism and Hermeticism and, most notably, in alchemy. Some snakes, such as rat snakes, have been known to consume themselves.^[5]

^ Theodoros Pelecanos's manuscript of an alchemical tract attributed to Synesius, in Codex Parisinus graecus 2327 in the Bibliothèque Nationale, France, mentioned s.v. 'alchemy', The Oxford Classical Dictionary, Oxford University Press, 2012, ISBN 0199545561
^ "uroboros". Lexico UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019.
^ "ouroboros". Dictionary.com. Random House.
^ "Salvador Dalí: Alchimie des Philosophes | The Ouroboros". Academic Commons. Willamette University.
^ Mattison, Chris (2007). The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. p. 105. ISBN 978-0-691-13295-2.