The tablet was found in 1976 in modern-day Iraq, and may have been the work of a sloppy student from 1,500 B.C.
By Rolando Pujol / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Wednesday, February 1, 2012, 12:19 AM

OK, they aren't exactly knee-slappers, but 3,500 years ago, the six riddles found on an ancient tablet in Iraq could well have been quite the howlers — and may even contain the oldest "Yo Mama" joke known to man.

The cuneiform chucklers, believed to be written by a Babylonian student circa 1,500 B.C., were carved on a damaged tablet, discovered in 1976 by an archaeologist, J.J. van Dijk. The tablet has since vanished, but van Dijk preserved what was written on it. Michael Streck and Nathan Wasserman studied the riddles and published their findings in the noted journal Iraq, published by the British Institute for the Study of Iraq.

The riddles' subject matter is earthy - sex, beer, and, of course, humor at the expense of mom.

The riddle that has most captured the imagination is cryptic, but unquestionably involves something sassy being said about somebody's mother:

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