2022-04-08 Fri

Charon's obol is an allusive term for the coin placed in or on the mouth of a dead person before burial. Greek and Latin literary sources specify the coin as an obol and explain it as a payment or bribe for Charon, the ferryman who conveyed souls across the river that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead.

Charon’s obols were the coins placed in or on the mouth of a dead person before burial. It was considered a bribe for Charon, the ferryman who carried souls across the river that divided the world of the living from the world of the dead, according to Greek and Latin literary sources. One type shows a “radiate” head, probably the sun god Helios or Apollo. Another type depicts a honeybee, perhaps expressing a wish for a sweet afterlife.

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