The Seikilos epitaph is the oldest surviving complete musical composition, including musical notation, from anywhere in the world. The song, the melody of which is recorded, alongside its lyrics, in ancient Greek musical notation, was found engraved on a 1st or 2nd century CE tombstone (a stele) from the Hellenistic town of Tralles near present-day Aydın, Turkey, near Ephesus. While older music with notation exists (for example the Hurrian songs), all of it is fragmentary; the Seikilos epitaph is unique in that it is a complete composition. The inscription is translated below:
“While you live, shine
have no grief at all
life exists only for a short while
and Time demands his due.
I am a tombstone, an image. Seikilos placed me here as a long-lasting sign of deathless remembrance.”
You can listen to a recording of the Seikilos Song here: https://youtu.be/9RjBePQV4xE
[Another 100% fake cover to go along with the first one. Note, no burn intended on Withers here! He’s currently the most sought-after party planner in Faerun.]