Humanity’s love affair with kissing goes way back, but just how far? Recent research has revealed that the art of smooching was already in full swing a staggering 4,500 years ago in Mesopotamia, and they’ve got the cuneiform to prove it!

According to the new research conducted by Dr. Troels Pank Arbøll from the University of Copenhagen and Dr. Sophie Lund Rasmussen from the University of Oxford, evidence from various sources indicates that kissing was a well-established tradition even earlier than previously thought, potentially pushing back the earliest documentation by a whopping 1,000 years to 2500 BC. Previous evidence accepted as the origins of kissing came from South Asia and placed it at 3,500 years ago.

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The new research claims that in Mesopotamia, which encompassed the regions between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers (modern-day Iraq and Syria), ancient humans were expressing their affection through lip-to-lip contact, as evidenced by the cuneiform writings on clay tablets that have survived to this day. These tablets provide clear examples of how kissing was considered a part of romantic relationships, as well as friendships and family bonds.

Read more: Ancient Origins