People in the ancient world, including Greece, usually died at a young age. War often took the lives of young men, while many young women died at home giving birth to their children. Our life expectancy today is much longer.
The ancient Greeks believed in some kind of life after death. Elaborate funerals were held to help the deceased’s soul find it’s way to the afterlife. According to Greek mythology, the god Hermes led the soul to the River Styx, which separated the world of the living from the Underworld, sometimes called Hades, after the god of the Underworld. A ferryman named Charon waited to take souls across the river to Hades. The trip cost one Greek coin which the dead person’s family usually placed on the corpse so that he or she would be able to pay for their journey.
In Hades the dead joined a community of souls who could be reborn in a new body. While waiting fro rebirth, they depended on their living relatives to tend them in certain ways, such as offering them food and drink at special times of the years. These reponsibilities were gladly carried out by the family, who wanted to do their part in making sure that the deceased rested comfortably. The idea of “rebirth” is found in various Greek myths.
Funerals were held to be sure that the dead person’s soul arrived safely in the Underworld (Hades). Before burial, the body was prepared and laid out on a couch with it’s feet facing the door. This way the spirit would be able to leave. The corpse was escorted to the cemetery by a procession of mourners wearing black robes and making gestures of grief (tearing at their clothes and hair).
Each family had a burial plot at the cemetery, which was located outside the city walls. The body was either cremated or buried with the dead person’s favorite belongings, food, and drink.