In this article I trace a history of the most ubiquitous visual symbol of madness: the staff. First, I argue that the staff, in its variants (such as the pinwheel) and with its attachments (such as an inflated bladder), represents madness as air. It thus represents madness as an invisible entity that must be made visible. Secondly, I claim that the staff – being iconic of other ‘unwanted’ categories such as vagabonds – represents the insane as outsiders. Also in this case, the staff serves the purpose of making madness visible. Through this interpretation I show that the urge to make madness visible outlives icons of insanity such as the staff, making it a constant presence in popular culture and medical practice.

在这篇文章中，我追溯了最普遍的疯狂视觉象征的历史：权杖。首先，我认为权杖的变体（例如风车）及其附件（例如充气的膀胱）代表了空气般的疯狂。因此，它把疯狂表现为一种必须变得可见的无形实体。其次，我声称这些工作人员——作为其他“不受欢迎”类别（例如流浪汉）的标志——代表了局外人的疯狂。同样在这种情况下，工作人员的目的就是让疯狂变得可见。通过这种解释，我表明，让疯狂变得可见的冲动比工作人员等疯狂的标志更长久，使其始终存在于流行文化和医疗实践中。