The Grave-mounds of Derbyshire, and their Contents. 847 



were buried with the dead in conformity with a superstitious 

 belief that they would expediate the passage of the soul across 

 the lake in Hades. The magic power of money in all connections 

 with human life, originated this custom. In all worldly matters 

 money then was, as it unfortunately now still is, the main, if not 

 the only sure passport to place and honour; and thus it was 

 believed that the soul of the man who had not received the 

 usual rites of burial, and in whose mouth no fee for the ferry- 

 man of the Stygian lake had been placed,* would wander 

 hopelessly on its banks, while decent interment and a small 

 brass coin would obviate any disagreeable enquiries that 

 Charon might else be inclined to make as to the merits or 

 claims of the applicant. Thus in the cinerary urns of the period 

 of which I am speaking, coins are very commonly found, and 

 also in interments by inhumation a small coin has in more than 

 one instance in Derbyshire been found within the skull in such 

 a manner as to leave no doubt of its having been placed inside 

 the mouth of the deceased. In some instances a considerable 

 number of coins have been found deposited together, or scat- 

 tered about in a barrow along with the human remains. In 

 Haddon Field a large number of coins, principally consisting of 

 third brass of Constantine, Constans, Constantius II., Valen- 

 tinian, Valens, and Gratian, were found along with bones, 

 fragments of pottery, traces of decayed wood, and a portion of 

 a glass vessel. At Minning-Low (the fine chambered tumulus, 

 described on page 188, ante), where several interments of the 

 Romano-British period have undoubtedly been made in the 

 earlier Celtic mound, many Roman coins along with portions of 

 sepulchral urns, etc., have from time to time been found. 

 These are principally of Claudius Gothicus, Constantine the 

 Great, Constantine junior, Yalentinian, and Constantius II. In 

 a barrow near Parwich upwards of eighty coins of the later 

 emperors were found. At Little Chester, some in connection 

 with human remains, and others scattered about in different parts 

 of the station, some hundreds of Roman coins have at various 

 times been found. In my own possession are considerably more 

 than a hundred examples from that locality, ranging from Ves- 

 pasian to Arcadius, and including Vespasian, Titus, Nerva, 

 Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Faustina senior, Marcus 

 Aurelius, Faustina junior, Commodus, Gordianus III., Philippus 

 senior, Yolusian, Gallienus, Salonina, Postumus senior, Yictori- 

 nus senior, Tetricus senior and junior, Claudius Gothicus, Carau- 

 sius, Allectus, Constantius Chlorus, Helena, Licinius senior, 

 Constantinus Maximus, Constantinus II., Constans, Constantius 

 II., Family of Constantine, Magnentius, Yalens, Arcadius, etc., 

 etc. 



* "Nee habet quern porrigat ore trienfcem."— Juvenal. 



