obol

views updated Jun 08 2018

obol an ancient Greek coin worth one sixth of a drachma, traditionally the coin placed in the mouth of the dead as a fee for Charon to ferry them across the Styx. The word originally meant ‘spit’ or ‘nail’, and came to be used for a type of coin as in early times nails were used as money.

obol

views updated May 23 2018

obol coin of ancient Greece. XVII. — L. obolus — Gr. obolós, var. of obelós OBELISK.