grave offerings

Grave offerings are objects placed with the dead at burial—food, weapons, jewelry, tools, or other items meant to accompany the deceased into the afterlife or honor their memory.

The practice spans virtually all human cultures and eras, from ancient Egyptian tombs filled with treasures to flowers left at modern gravesites.

Archaeologists study grave offerings to understand beliefs about death and the afterlife: The grave offerings included pottery, bronze weapons, and gold ornaments.