4,000-Year-Old Ancient Babylonian Tablet Is Oldest Customer Service Complaint Ever Discovered

It was considerably more difficult to file a customer complaint when you had to chip it into stone and send it by foot messenger!

A cuniform tablet similar to this one on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art rails against poor customer service, a perennial problem. Wikimedia Commons

A clay tablet from ancient Babylon reveals that no matter where (or when) you go, good customer service can be hard find. So it was revealed by the irate copper merchant, Nanni, in 1750 B.C. The merchant’s aggravation is evident, spelled out in cuneiform on a clay tablet now displayed in The British Museum.

In what is said to be the oldest customer service complaint discovered, Babylonian copper merchant Nanni details at length his anger at a sour deal, and his dissatisfaction with the quality assurance and service of Ea-nasir.