The ceremonial practice is believed to have originated in
ancient Rome. One theory is that due to the dangers of early sea travel, the coins were placed under the mast so that the crew would be able to cross to the afterlife if the ship were sunk. The Romans believed it was necessary for a person to take coins with them to pay
Charon in order to cross the
river Styx to the afterlife, and as a result of this
coins were placed in the mouths of the dead before they were buried. Another theory for this practice is that the insertion of coins in buildings and ships may have functioned as a form of
sacrifice to thank the gods for a successful construction, or as a request for divine protection in the future. A third theory is that corrosion-resistant coins of gold or silver provided a physical barrier, minimizing the transmission of rot between the wooden mast and wooden mast step. The
Blackfriars I shipwreck (circa 150 A.D.) had a coin in the mast-step. ==See also==