In later Babylonian times, at any rate, the son could not marry without his father’s consent. This we learn from a suit in high life, in the time of Cyrus.(275) A high official of the king’s, A, brought a suit against B, who was “over the house,” before the nobles and the king’s judges. A accused B and C, an official of his house, of having given a tablet of marriage-contract of D, a sister of C’s, to A’s son without A’s consent. Put to the oath, B swore that he did not seal the tablet. Then D was questioned. Then C acknowledged that he had drawn up and sealed with B’s seal the marriage-contract of D to A’s son. The judges ordered D to return to her brother’s house. The tablet was to be broken whenever found. If afterward D should be seen with A’s son, she was to bear the sign of a concubine. (M342) From other examples the conclusion is inevitable that if a woman desired to be a full and proper wife she had to obtain the consent of her bridegroom’s father. Thus we read:(276) “The day that the woman A is seen with B he shall bring her to the wedding-house. If she does not say to the master of the wedding-house: Send for C, the father of B, then she shall wear the sign of a concubine.” Her mother was present at the sealing of this agreement. From this we may deduce that weddings took place at a definite spot, called the “wedding-house.” The name was literally “house of the males,” or “of the named ones,” and also house of the _mâr bânê_, or “sons of ancestors.” It is clear that this was a registration court where all who had pretensions to ancestry, or were people of position, were enrolled. One whose name was found there was a man “with a name,” also a “son of an ancestor.” He was probably registered there at birth, marriage, and death. The master of that house was a registrar and evidently could marry people. It was expected in this case that the woman, if she wished to be properly married, would send for the bridegroom’s father, whose consent was necessary. Another name for the house was _bît pirṣatum_, the meaning of which is obscure. But as Ishtar was _bêlit parṣê_, the “lady of _the parṣê_,” we may connect it also with weddings.