Mesopotamia

The Key to Epic of Gilgamesh

Mesopotamia

• Location: modern day Iraq

• Formation: fertile crescent between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers

• Civilizations: Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonia

Discovery of the Epic

• Sumerian cities: Ur and Uruk-- surrounded by walls

• Sumerian writing: pictographic--improved into cuneiform

• Hammurabi-- first legal code

• Assyrian/Akkadian-overthrew Sumerians

• Greatest King: Ashurbanipal

• His library at Nineveh contained the tablets with the Epic

• Deciphered by George Smith

George Smith’s Discovery

• An account of a great flood

• Known as “The Deluge Tablets”

• Funded a return trip--• Found all 12 tablets of

the Epic- but died

The Epic of Gilgamesh

A Protest Against Death

Gilgamesh

• 2/3 god; 1/3 man

• Built walls of Uruk

• Perfect body

• Courageous

• Went on a journey-- wrote down his story

• HE is the one telling the story

Enkidu

• Gilgamesh’s loyal sidekick

• Ashamed to have been cursed by a goddess

Gilgamesh’s Reaction

• Long speech to people and things of Uruk

• Rages like a lion

• Tears out his hair and throws off his clothes

• Acts like this for 7 days and 7 nights

• Buries Enkidu when “worm fastened to him”

• Afraid of his own death

• Goes in search of Utnapishtim

The Story of the Flood

• The Gods were angry because of all of the BABEL

• Enlil encouraged the gods to exterminate mankind

• Ea warned Utnapishtim about the flood thru a dream

• Utnapishtim “ironically” told everyone that Enlil was mad at him and would “rain abundance upon everyone else”

• Utnapishtim built a barque

Utnapishtim’s Barque

• 120 cubits• 7 decks• Family (kin), gold,

wild and tame beasts• Prepared just in time

for the storm

The Storm

• Gods were even terrified of the storm

• Ishtar regrets exterminating mankind

• 7th day storm stops• 7 days the boat rests• Dove, swallow, raven

Utnapishtim’s actions

• Build a sacrifice: 7 cauldrons

• Ea to Enlil-- punishment too harsh

• Enlil grants Utnapishtim immortal life

The Return• Utnapishtim tells

Gilgamesh of a plant• “the Old Men are young

again” grants eternal youth

• Gilgamesh ties stones to his feet and retrieves the plant

• Gilgamesh plans to give plant to old men first

• While bathing, a serpent steals the plant

• The serpent loses his skin

• Gilgamesh returns home disappointed

• Gilgamesh looks at his accomplishments and writes the story down