Why Do People Leave Money on Burial Mounds?

Imagine you are going on a long boat trip. You might pay a little bit of money for your ticket so you can ride comfortably. Long ago, people believed that when you died, your soul had to take a very long boat trip to get to the afterlife.

So, families would put coins in the mouth or pockets of their loved ones. This was like buying them a seat on the boat. If they forgot the money, the poor ghost might have to wait forever or swim across!

Sometimes people used special old coins that didn't look like regular money anymore. They were not spending it at the store; they were saving it for the journey. Today, when archaeologists dig up old graves, they find these treasures. It helps us understand how much the family loved the person who passed away.