Wherever you go (i.e. drive) here in the States, you constantly come across this symbol. That's partly because chemists (sorry, pharmacies) aren't limited to medicines and related products, but can - and indeed do - sell food, newspapers, air conditioners, garden furniture, you name it. As such, they tend to be much larger than their European counterparts and therefore more noticeable as you drive past in your SUV.
What's more baffling, however, is the symbol for prescription drugs. It is not, as you might expect, a sort of fused bowdlerised abbreviation using the first letter of the word "prescription" and an Xmas-like "X" to denote "scription". Oh no, that would be far too simple.
As it turns out, the abbreviation of "prescription" is "Rx". But here's where it gets really weird: although several suggestions have been put forward (ranging from the plausible - "recipere" in Latin - to the ridiculous - the eye of Horus, Jupiter), there is no agreement about how exactly the abbreviation - and by extension the symbol - was dreamt up!!
What's more baffling, however, is the symbol for prescription drugs. It is not, as you might expect, a sort of fused bowdlerised abbreviation using the first letter of the word "prescription" and an Xmas-like "X" to denote "scription". Oh no, that would be far too simple.
As it turns out, the abbreviation of "prescription" is "Rx". But here's where it gets really weird: although several suggestions have been put forward (ranging from the plausible - "recipere" in Latin - to the ridiculous - the eye of Horus, Jupiter), there is no agreement about how exactly the abbreviation - and by extension the symbol - was dreamt up!!
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