Epic Of Gilgamesh, is an epic poem from Ancient Mesopotamia when paper books did not exist. The whole tale is told on 12 tablets.
The Epic of Gilgamesh, from the time it was rediscovered and reconstructed in the late nineteenth century, has created a sense of controversy and curiosity among historians of the ancient near east.
A huge reason for the excitement was the incorporations of other stories and the evidence of the flood story from Genesis. With this, the Epic creates a parallel to the bible and the society of Mesopotamia nearly 4,000 years ago.
Gilgamesh is known to be the first great hero, and the epic is known as the ‘first great masterpiece of world literature’. Throughout their culture, we find many examples of similar instances that continue for years to come. Some of these instances are the idea of a strong male leader and a council of city elders, but also the gender division, which is important throughout their religion too. There seems to be a concern with the rights of the citizens, as Gilgamesh is expected to be a just ruler, and being a ruler with outrage over his abuses actually leads to the creation of Enkidu in the story.
The ancient authors of the stories that compose the poem are anonymous. The latest and most complete version yet found, composed no later than around 600 b.c., was signed by a Babylonian author and editor who called himself Sin-Leqi-Unninni.
Type Of Work Epic poem
Genre Heroic quest; heroic epic
Language Sumerian; Akkadian; Hurrian; Hittite. All these languages were written in cuneiform script.
Time And Place Written Between 2700 b.c. and around 600 b.c. in Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq)
Source: Hannah Jensen, Olney Illinois, in her paper What does the Epic of Gilgamesh Reveal about Mesopotamian Culture and Religion?
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