Recently I have been reading a few history novels, and being the romantic that I am, it got me thinking about how love is supposed to be universal, so it has to be timeless. So where did the first love letter come from? Who wrote it? So I set about researching actual stories of love from medieval times (and before), and I came upon the world’s oldest love letter. Simply put, it’s beautiful, and no one in modern times ever puts their feelings and heart on paper for the world to see, never mind putting it on stone.
The oldest love letter found to date was founded in 2200BC on the Niffer Valley in Iraq. The letter was written by a high priestess named Inanna Sumerian, to her husband the King, on their wedding night. It is now known that it was a tradition that the bride writes a romantic poem to her husband on the night they were to be married. The letter was written in the Sumerian language, which at first stumped archaeologists as they could not translate it. Only after 58 years of its discovery could the letter finally be translated by a Sumerian language expert, Muazzez Avalanche. And this is what is said…
Bridegroom, dear to my heart,
Goodly is your beauty, honeysweet,
Lion, dear to my heart,
Goodly is your beauty, honeysweet.
You have captivated me,
Let me stand tremblingly before you.
Bridegroom, I would be taken by you to the bedchamber,
You have captivated me,
Let me stand tremblingly before you.
Lion, I would be taken by you to the bedchamber.
Bridegroom, let me caress you,
My precious caress is more savory than honey,
In the bedchamber, honey-filled,
Let me enjoy your goodly beauty,
Lion, let me caress you,
My precious caress is more savory than honey.
Bridegroom, you have taken your pleasure of me,
Tell my mother, she will give you delicacies,
My father, he will give you gifts.
Your spirit, I know where to cheer your spirit,
Bridegroom, sleep in our house until dawn,
Your heart, I know where to gladden your heart,
Lion, sleep in our house until dawn.
You, because you love me,
Give me pray of your caresses,
My lord god, my lord protector,
My Shu-Sin, who gladdens Enlil’s heart,
Give my pray of your caresses.
Your place goodly as honey, pray lay your hand on it,
Bring your hand over like a gishban-garment,
Cup your hand over it like a gishban-sikin-garment.
This entry was posted on Sunday 27 March 2011
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2200BC,
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