The letter was not opened for 4,000 years – and what was discovered inside surprised the researchers

Scientists have read a 4,000-year-old clay letter for the first time without breaking the envelope, using advanced X-ray scanning. The letter, sent by a Babylonian woman named Anna-Anna to her merchant husband Anum-Ashur, reveals her struggle to collect a monetary debt from the debtor Lakpum, while she rebukes her husband for his neglect.

An international team of scientists has succeeded in reading a 4,000-year-old clay letter, sealed inside a clay envelope, without breaking it. The development, a portable device called ENCI based on high-energy X-ray scanning, allows the envelope to be 'peeled' virtually and its contents revealed. The letter, uncovered at a museum in Ankara, Turkey, was written by a woman named Anna-Anna to her merchant husband Anum-Ashur. The husband lent money to a man named Lakpum and tasked his wife with collecting the debt. In the letter, the woman describes her frustration with the debtor who refuses to pay, and rebukes her husband: 'If you haven't come within ten days – get up and come! I hear bad words all the time!' The researchers note that the letter testifies to the status of women in ancient commercial society, who managed businesses and collected debts while their husbands were away. In another envelope that was scanned, a perfectly preserved 4,000-year-old barley grain was discovered.

The letter was not opened for 4,000 years – and what was discovered inside surprised the researchers