"Nothing in life is certain except death and taxes."

 The Grim Reaper is a personification of death and isn’t someone who kills mortals, but rather transports their souls to the afterlife. He is often portrayed wearing a black cloak, holding a scythe in one hand, and an hourglass in the other. 

 The Grim Reaper seems to have appeared in the 14th century when Europe was facing the world’s worst pandemic, the Black Death. This medieval-era plague permanently changed how the average person saw death. With at least 25 million people dying in the initial outbreak, and millions continuing to die in outbreaks flaring up for centuries, a sense of sorrow and misery hovered above all activities, influencing writers and artists of the time. Death soon started to be symbolized by a skeleton in the artwork during the era. Most artists depicted this form of death in similar ways. Death was often shown holding arrows, a crossbow, or another weapon. Sometimes a young woman was seen standing at death’s side, providing a reminder of the link between life and death. 



The way we see the Grim Reaper, holding a scythe and hourglass and wearing a cloak, has a lot of symbolism behind it. The Reaper’s skeletal figure represents the human body after going through decomposition and reinforces the fear of obliteration, one of the greatest human fears. The black cloak provides the Reaper with an air of mystery and danger. By hiding in the shadows of his cloak, the Reaper uses our fear of the unknown to intimidate and spook us. A scythe is used to reap, or cut, grain or grass. “Harvesters used scythes to reap crops that were ready to be plucked from the Earth'' (Mckenna). Harvesting is done in the fall and represents the death of the year. The hourglass in the Reaper’s hands is a strong symbol of time. The Reaper holds his to let everyone know their days are numbered and will come to an end. “When the sand runs out, our time is up” (Harris). 





Sources: How the Grim Reaper Works | HowStuffWorks, Where Does the Concept of a “Grim Reaper” Come From? | Britannica

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