11. The Bridge of Dalal

A builder was commissioned to build a bridge in Cizre Bohtan. The emir cut off his right hand lest he build a similar bridge elsewhere. To take revenge against the emir, the builder fled to Zakho and accepted to build a bridge there. The arch of the bridge kept collapsing. A fortune-teller advised the builder to sacrifice the first ‘living soul’ who would come onto the bridge the next day and put it inside the bridge in order for the arch to hold together. The next morning, the builder’s daughter-in-law, Dalal, brought the workers food. She came with a dog. The dog was distracted by a mouse at the edge of the bridge. Dalal was the first to stand on the bridge. She was put into the bridge alive and the arch was completed successfully. The next day, her husband tried to take her out of the bridge. Dalal made him stop, saying that she would be happy to be a sacrifice for Zakho.