Death in Ancient Greece

View of the afterlife

• Ideas about the afterlife were never uniform amongst the Greeks

• Some common beliefs included– At the moment of death the psuche (soul) left the

body through the mouth– The corpse which remains is not important– All souls go to Hades

Realm of Hades• Several routes

• Subterranean passages• Sailing over the edge of the Western Sea

• Surrounded by water• River Acheron• River Styx

• On arrival a soul would be prevented from crossing until its body was buried

• Life for a soul• Shadowy existence• No personality or understanding• No rewards or punishments• Later development of Elysium for the good, Tartarus for the

bad

Psuchopompoi

• Souls are first helped by Thanatos• Hermes then received souls and accompanies them

to the Underworld• Charon ferries souls across the water to Hades• Requires payment of an obol (1/6 of a day’s wage)

• Hades was eventually entered by a gate guarded by the monstrous Cerberus• Cerberus was there to stop anything from leaving

Psuchopompoi

• Souls are first helped by Thanatos• Hermes then received souls and accompanies them

to the Underworld• Charon ferries souls across the water to Hades• Requires payment of an obol (1/6 of a day’s wage)

• Hades was eventually entered by a gate guarded by the monstrous Cerberus• Cerberus was there to stop anything from leaving

Psuchopompoi

• Souls are first helped by Thanatos• Hermes then received souls and accompanies them

to the Underworld• Charon ferries souls across the water to Hades• Requires payment of an obol (1/6 of a day’s wage)

• Hades was eventually entered by a gate guarded by the monstrous Cerberus• Cerberus was there to stop anything from leaving

Hades and Persephone

• The Underworld is ruled over by Hades and his consort Persephone– Persephone was the daughter of the goddess

Demeter– Hades had abducted Persephone leading Demeter

to curse the land– Zeus intervened via Hermes and had her returned– But she had tasted Hades’ food and so was bound

to return to him for 1/3 of the year (=Winter)

Typical Funeral• Preparation of the body (prothesis)

– Took place indoors– Body was washed, salves, clothed in red/white– Adorned with crown of leaves, ribbons, flowers– Corpse placed on a bed of planks

• Funeral procession (ekphora)– Corpse was carried to a grave outside the city before daybreak on third day by

family and fiends– Priests did not attend because of fear of ritual pollution

• Burial– Corpse wrapped in cloth or placed in a coffin– Ashes placed in a container– Sacrifices or libations made at graveside– Sometimes curse tablets would be placed in the grave– Monument raised above grave

• Commemorative Feast (perideipnoin)

Typical Funeral• Preparation of the body (prothesis)

– Took place indoors– Body was washed, salves, clothed in red/white– Adorned with crown of leaves, ribbons, flowers– Corpse placed on a bed of planks

• Funeral procession (ekphora)– Corpse was carried to a grave outside the city before daybreak on third day by

family and fiends– Priests did not attend because of fear of ritual pollution

• Burial– Corpse wrapped in cloth or placed in a coffin– Ashes placed in a container– Sacrifices or libations made at graveside– Sometimes curse tablets would be placed in the grave– Monument raised above grave

• Commemorative Feast (perideipnoin)

Ghosts

• Categories of ghost– Those dead before their time– Those killed violently– Those dead before marriage– Those deprived of burial

• Ghosts can be summoned up if you know the ritual• Sometimes a haunting souls needs to be laid to

rest• Other weirdness– Re-animated corpses– Prophesying heads (of Orpheus)– Wolfmen

Ghosts

• Categories of ghost– Those dead before their time– Those killed violently– Those dead before marriage– Those deprived of burial

• Ghosts can be summoned up if you know the ritual

• Other weirdness– Re-animated corpses– Prophesying heads (of Orpheus)– Wolfmen

Activities

a) Draw a map of the geography of the underworld– You may need to doe some extra research!

b) Write a ghost story set in Ancient Greece– There is an example set in Corinth on CGS

Connect

c) Design your own funerary stele and commemorative inscription– What will you be remembered for?