what is the story behind leavings coins in the eyes of the dead.?

Question

I know it's along the lines of paying a toll to a person on a boat and cross over to the next life, behind I'm sketchy with the details. any links or info appreciated,

Answer 1

to pay Cheron for the ferry ride across the River Styks

Charon, in Greek mythology, is the ferryman of the dead. The souls of the deceased are brought to him by Hermes, and Charon ferries them across the river Acheron. He only accepts the dead which are buried or burned with the proper rites, and if they pay him an obolus (coin) for their passage. For that reason a corpse had always an obolus 1 placed under the tongue.
Those who cannot afford the passage, or are not admitted by Charon, are doomed to wander on the banks of the Styx for a hundred years. Living persons who wish to go to the underworld need a golden bough obtained from the Cumaean Sibyl. Charon is the son of Erebus and Nyx. He is depicted as an sulky old man, or as a winged demon carrying a double hammer. He is similar to the Etruscan (Charun).

1. Occasionally, a danace -- an ancient Persian coin which is worth rather more than the Greek obolus -- was placed in the mouth of the dead.


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Answer 2

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Ackshally, ahem, ackshally these folks have it partly right. The practice of putting coins on the eyes is rather recent ... more 16-17th century. The Greeks would put a coin in the dead man's MOUTH so he could pay the fare into the land o' the dead. The later practice of putting coins over the EYES was for the convenience of the mourners, not the corpse. Coins were traditional (the "fare"), and the funeral organizers needed something to cover the corpse's eyeholes. See, pre-refrigeration, eyes were among the first targets of insects looking for dinner, if you'll pardon the indelicacy. Eyes are particularly vulnerable and are among the first body parts to go on an exposed corpse. The coins hid any maggots that might have started chowing down while the family was gathering for the funeral. Gack.

Answer 3

Until about 35 years ago, it was still practiced in my home province. It was to keep the eyes closed, as the relaxed position for your eyelids is open. They also stitched the lips shut and made sure someone rolled the body over twice so that it wouldn't "breath" (air let out of the lungs). A highly skilled woman could stitch the eye lids closed without making it look strange.

However, the answers here are right, the Greeks did it so the dead could pay the Ferry Man for fare across the River Styx. Other cultures have used this idea as well. In places where they didn't use coins, they often covered the eyes or face in another way.

Answer 4

It started in ancient Greece to pay for the toll across the river of Stiks. If you didn't have the money to pay for it, the guardian of the river wouldn't let you cross and you'd be doomed to spend the rest of eternity wandering around the river trying to find the well hidden entrance to Hadies.

Some Greece cultures put the coins under the deceased person's tongue as well.

Answer 5

It was two-fold:

1) it kept the eyes of the dead closed...(simple but true)

2) it was considered the toll money needed to cross the river Styx which laid between the world of the living and the dead. The Ferry man was said to only take those who could afford his fee... I guess even the undead have to make a living?

Answer 6

To pay a toll to Charon, the ferryer of the River Styx. This is in Greek mythology.

Answer 7

I know it has to do with being able to pay to get a boat ride to the after life, or something along those lines.

Answer 8

This goes back to the 1800s when pennies were about the size of quarters,

These pennies were placed on a dead persons eyes to keep them closed until rigormortis set in.

As a child I attended a funeral and the corpse had his eyes open, and it was pretty scary for me.

Answer 9

The coins are to pay the guardian of the gates of the underworld or to pay the boatman who rows you across the underground river on the way to the underworld. If you could not pay, your soul would wander eternally and could not be reborn.

Answer 10

It is a custom in some cultures to place coins on the eyelids of the dead to keep their eyes closed. It is a Magyar custom to close the eyes of the dead with silver because, if they remain open, we would see our own death captured in their eyes.