Victors in athletic games in ancient Greece were awarded a wreath or crown made of natural leaves. These were also worn in symposia and religious processions. The Romans expanded such practice when military commanders and emperors were crowned with wreaths of triumph. As wreaths were transformed into a symbol of power and status, leaves from plants were replaced by those of gold that were also dedicated in sanctuaries and buried with the dead as grave goods in the great Beyond. After the death of Alexander the Great (356–323 BC), the immense wealth of the east poured into the west, attested by this gold wreath.