Signing of the Marriage License

In ancient Babylonian and Assyria, marriage contracts were written on clay tablets. They were included in the large collections (25,000 tablets) of Assurbanipal II of Nineveh, the worlds first librarian. The marriage tablets came into use in Western society for the first time during the period of the Roman emperors.

After the celebration, when the bride had been ushered into the bridal chamber and the marriage was presumed to be successfully consummated, one of two things usually happened. A sacrifice was offered to the gods, and the marriage was recorded in the register!!!

We have come a long way! One of the rituals that I enjoy most is immediately following the wedding, I invite the two witnesses to sign the license and have the couple look on. I had always wondered why it was done off to the side, or privately, and I felt that the witnesses serve such an important role, why not bring them front and center! They seem to enjoy the ritual and the couple does as well, and it provides yet another great photo op for the photographer! So, when the time comes for the signing of your marriage license, make it part of your ritual and make your witnesses feel proud to be serving as part of your bridal party!