Hermes was the ancient Greek god of trade, wealth, luck, fertility, animal husbandry, sleep, language, and travel. One of the cleverest and most mischievous of the Olympian gods, he was the patron of shepherds, invented the lyre, and was, above all, the herald and messenger for the gods, conductor of the dead and protector of merchants and thieves, so that he came to symbolise the crossing of boundaries in his role as a guide between the two realms of gods and humanity. To the Romans, the god was known as Mercury. The painting shows Hermes holding the Caduceus, a winged staff, though here without the usual two snakes wrapped around it. It was an ancient astrological symbol of commerce.