Probably one of the most famous coin-related beliefs is the one about Charon’s obol, which originated in ancient Greece and was also adopted by the Romans. In Greek mythology, Charon was the boatman of the underworld who rowed the souls of the departed across the river to their eternal resting place. The river is known as Acheron in ancient Greece and as Styx in ancient Rome. The dead who could not pay the fare were doomed to wander on the riverbank. The coin was usually placed under the tongue of the deceased. In Latin, Charon’s obol is sometimes called a viaticum, or ‘sustenance for the journey’; the placement of the coin on or in the mouth has also been explained as a seal to protect the soul of the deceased or to prevent it from returning. In popular culture, you will often see the coins placed on the eyes of the deceased. In the, Patroclus and Hektor are both shown with coins on their eyes at the time of their funerals, which is historically incorrect since the coins did not exist yet within the traditionally adopted historical timeline for the Trojan War. In the 2001 film , Johnny Depp’s character places two Victorian coins (that look like pennies) on the murder victim’s eyes and mentions ‘paying the Ferryman’, thus referring to Charon.
