Symbol for death
The most recognised symbol for death is the skull and crossbones ☠ or human skull 💀. Other death symbols include the coffin ⚰️, headstone 🪦, black heart 🖤, wilted flower 🥀, and the typographical dagger † used in genealogy to mark the deceased.
Click any symbol to copy it. 7 symbols
Death and danger signs
2Mourning and remembrance emoji
4Genealogical death symbol
1The dagger mark † indicates death date in family trees and biographies.
The skull and crossbones ☠
The human skull paired with crossed thigh bones is the world’s most familiar mortality emblem. In late medieval Europe, painters and stonemasons carved skulls on tombs as a memento mori, a Latin reminder that every living soul must eventually die. In the eighteenth century, seafarers and pirates hoisted the skull and crossbones on black flags, known as the Jolly Roger, to demand immediate surrender upon the high seas.
Modern industry adapted this graphic as a universal chemical hazard and poison emblem. In digital text, ☠ is the skull and crossbones character. See its history, shortcuts, and entity codes on the skull and crossbones page, and find related safety signs in our warning symbols collection.
Mourning, tombstones and digital grief
Burial customs have provided several poignant symbols for death and remembrance. The coffin ⚰️ and carved headstone 🪦 represent formal resting places and graveside memorials. The wilted flower 🥀 conveys the fleeting, fragile nature of life, expressing deep sorrow when words fail. Online, people frequently send the black heart 🖤 to offer condolences, honour a lost loved one, or signal solemn mourning; find every heart shade in our heart symbols collection.
The dagger sign † in printing and family trees
In book printing and genealogy, the dagger or obelisk † has represented death since the seventeenth century. Biographers place it beside a person’s year of demise, as in “Jane Doe (* 1890, † 1965)”. Its visual similarity to the Christian cross reinforced its association with funerals and epitaphs; see related emblems in our cross symbols collection.
Death, transformation and celebration
Not every culture regards death purely with terror or finality. In Mexico, the holiday Día de los Muertos welcomes departed spirits back with vibrant marigolds and decorated sugar skulls 💀. Across philosophical traditions, death is understood as the necessary counterpart to vitality; explore this eternal relationship on our companion page for the symbol for life, or explore renewal on our symbols for new beginnings page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the universal symbol for death?
The skull and crossbones ☠ and human skull 💀 are the most widely recognised symbols for death, danger, and mortality worldwide.
Why does a dagger symbol † mean death?
In typography and genealogy, the dagger † (obelisk) resembles a Christian cross and has marked death dates in biographical entries for centuries.
What emoji represents mourning or grief?
People commonly share the black heart 🖤, wilted rose 🥀, headstone 🪦, and coffin ⚰️ to express condolences and solemn remembrance.
What is the difference between ☠ and 💀?
☠ shows crossed bones beneath or behind the skull, traditionally used for pirate flags and poison labels, whereas 💀 is an isolated human cranium.