Silappathikaram, the earliest epic poem in Tamil, written in the 5th–6th century AD by Prince Ilanko Adikal (Ilango Adigal). Its plot is derived from a well-known story.

The Silappathikaram tells of the young merchant Kovalan’s marriage to the virtuous Kannaki (Kannagi), his love for the courtesan Matavi, and his consequent ruin and exile in Maturai, where he is unjustly executed after trying to sell his wife’s anklet to a wicked goldsmith who had stolen the queen’s anklet and charged Kovalan with the theft. The widow Kannaki comes to Maturai, proves Kovalan’s innocence, then tears off one breast and throws it at the kingdom of Maturai, which goes up in flames. Such is the power of a faithful wife. The third book deals with a king’s expedition to bring Himalayan stone for an image of Kannaki, now a goddess of chastity.