棺かんを蓋おおいて事こと定さだまる

expression

a person's worth is assessed only when their coffin is sealed

Proverb meaning that a person's true value or character cannot be fully judged until after their death, when their life can be seen as a whole.

• 棺かんを蓋おおいて事こと定さだまるというように、彼かれの評ひょう価かは死し後ごに高たかまった。

  As the saying goes, a person's worth is assessed only when their coffin is sealed; his reputation rose after his death.