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2022, Echoes of the Classical World
According to the ancient Greeks, existence did not end after death. Death was seen as a rite of passage everyone must enter, signifying only the beginning of the afterlife. Greek burial customs and funerary rites were carefully performed to properly honor the deceased and prepare them for the transition into the afterlife. One such custom was the placing of an obol into the mouth of the deceased, guaranteeing passage to Hades on the boat of the ferryman, Charon. Ancient Greeks believed that upon death, the soul of the deceased came to the River Acheron, the final plane between that of the living world and Hades. Awaiting them on a boat was a pale, thin figure with a gray beard, Charon, demanding his payment. Charon then ferried the soul into Hades. For those souls not given the proper burial customs, they were doomed to wander the shores of the River Acheron.
Text by Estella McCall, Washburn student