 The phrase "Charon’s obol" as used by archaeologists sometimes can be understood as referring to a particular religious rite, but often serves as a kind of shorthand for coinage as grave goods presumed to further the deceased's passage into the afterlife.In Latin, Charon's obol sometimes is called a "viaticum", or "sustenance for the journey"; the placement of the coin on the mouth has been explained also as a seal to protect the deceased's soul or to prevent it from returning.The coin for Charon is conventionally referred to in Greek literature as an "obolos" (Greek ὀβολός), one of the basic denominations of ancient Greek coinage, worth one-sixth of a drachma.