Analysis: From the Epic of Gilgamesh

Date: c. 2000 BCE

Geographic Region: Sumer (present-day Iraq)

Translator: Nancy Sandars

Summary Overview

The Epic of Gilgamesh is the story of an ancient Sumerian ruler who built the great wall around the city-state of Uruk, in southern Sumer, which is part of present-day Iraq. It is one of the earliest complete works of cuneiform (the wedge-shaped system of Sumerian writing) literature. The most complete account of the story is from a version titled He Who Saw the Deep, which was transcribed sometime in the twelfth century BCE and was based on earlier oral and written versions. While the Gilgamesh of the story became almost mythical in description, the actual king who most likely inspired the epic is believed to have lived and reigned over the city-state of Uruk in ancient Mesopotamia circa 2600 BCE.

The story provides one of the most comprehensive pictures of religious practice and belief during the twenty-first century BCE, the period in which it was first recorded. A renaissance of art, literature, and architecture characterized this period in Sumer. Sumerian kings even established academies to study and record ancient stories. One ruler in particular, Shulgi of Ur, was known as a patron of literature and also referred to himself as Gilgamesh's “brother.” It is likely that these stories were initially recorded for his court.

Defining Moment

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an important record, not only of the period in which it was written down, but also of the period in which it was set—the early years of the ancient Sumerian city of Uruk. It is not known exactly when the Sumerians first settled in the region, but evidence has been found of writing, the use of wheeled vehicles, wind-powered boats, and irrigation that dates to the fourth millennium BCE. Uruk was the largest early city in Sumer.

The period when Uruk was most prominent lasted from approximately 4100 to 2900 BCE. Uruk continued to maintain its position as a cultural and religious center, even as more accessible ports, such as Ur, became commercial centers. Other cities were well-established during this period, and agriculture and trade flourished. The city-states of Sumer were ruled by priest-kings during this time, some with councils and well-developed administrative structures. Trade between Sumerian merchants and foreign lands as well as other cities seems to have hastened the development of cuneiform writing as a necessary means of codified, long-distance communication.

During the Early Dynastic Period, from approximately 2900 to 2334 BCE, priest-kings gave way to more secular rulers. The city-states of Sumer went to war with each other to gain territory and control water. Near the end of the period, the city-state of Lagash gained control of most of Sumer, until the king of Lagash was overthrown by his servant, Sargon of Akkad, who founded the Akkadian Empire. The Akkadians lost control of Sumer when the Gutians invaded around 2218 BCE. The Gutians were not capable administrators, however, and the period of Gutian rule saw Sumerian culture in precipitous decline. Around 2112 BCE, evidence suggests that the ruler of Uruk, a native Sumerian named Utu-hegal, led a revolt against the Gutian king and successfully founded the Third Dynasty of Ur.

During the Third Dynasty, when most of the Epic of Gilgamesh was recorded, southern Mesopotamia was ruled by native Sumerian kings. The territory controlled from the city of Ur was a smaller size than the Akkadian Empire had been and was managed by capable administrators. Urban life was fairly stable, leading to the production of an impressive body of literature, art, and architecture. Most scholars believe that ancient Sumerian poems were recorded during this period as entertainment for the courts of the kings of Ur.

Document Information

Although many versions of the story of Gilgamesh have been found since, the first discovery of the Epic of Gilgamesh was made in 1853, when the ruins of the library of Ashurbanipal, the last great king of the Assyrian Empire, were uncovered. Ashurbanipal was a collector, and his library, destroyed along with the city of Nineveh in 612 BCE, provided a wealth of information about ancient Sumer. The best-known version of the Epic of Gilgamesh was written in Akkadian on a series of clay tablets around the twelfth century BCE by a Babylonian scholar. The selection given here is from a translation by the eminent British archeologist Nancy Sandars (1914– ), which was first published by Penguin in 1960. It is not a faithful translation of the version found in Nineveh. The author used multiple previous translations to produce a readable prose version of the story rather than preserve the original epic-poem format.

Document Analysis

The Epic of Gilgamesh does more than provide an entertaining story. Readers are able to surmise from the text that the Sumerians were literate, that they had a complex religious life filled with many gods, that they honored kings, and that they thought it was possible for men and gods to interact and even reproduce. Readers also learn that the Sumerians cultivated land, cared for livestock, and grew grapes for wine. They thought of themselves as a civilization in contrast to the natural world. Perhaps most telling, this epic poem reveals that they thought deeply about mortality and the meaning of life and death; they had a keen understanding of the complexity of the human experience.

The epic is recounted by an anonymous narrator who informs the reader that when Gilgamesh returned from his travels, he wrote his story in stone. This, then, is the narrator's interpretation of stories he has heard from someone who had read the stone. Gilgamesh is described as perfect in body and surpassing all others in strength and beauty. However, he is also depicted as a vain and cruel king. It is only after transformative friendships and a long search for the secret of everlasting life that Gilgamesh is able to return to his people as the beloved and responsible leader he is meant to be. He finally understands that all humans will die and that it is up to the gods to decide how long mortals live. Therefore, he determines, humans must do what they can with the time that they have.

The epic begins by describing Gilgamesh, who is two-thirds human and one-third deity. He is both beautiful and terrible, oppressing his subjects, raping the women, and attacking the men. When the citizens of Uruk lament the fate of a bride on her wedding night, the gods create Enkidu, who is meant to be a check to Gilgamesh's power. Enkidu is a wild creature, vividly illustrating the Sumerian view of the separation between the natural and civilized worlds. A temple prostitute is sent to tempt him into the world of men. Though he loses his ability to commune with nature after his encounter with the prostitute, he gains wisdom, which marks him as human. After a skirmish, Gilgamesh and Enkidu become friends and companions and set off on a quest to steal sacred cedar trees and kill Humbaba, the giant who guards them. The gods retaliate by causing Enkidu to fall ill and die.

The remainder of the epic is Gilgamesh's quest for eternal life in the wake of his friend's death. He finds a hero who has obtained eternal life, but he realizes that this will not be his fate. He returns to Uruk and finds peace in the knowledge that he has left his mark on the city by building the great cedar wall, a symbol of human capacity and his immortality.

Bibliography and Additional Reading

Crawford, Harriet, ed. The Sumerian World. New York: Routledge, 2013. Print.

Kramer, Samuel Noah. Sumerian Mythology: A Study of Spiritual and Literary Achievement in the Third Millennium B.C. Philadelphia: U of Pennsylvania P, 1961. Print.

Sandars, Nancy, trans. The Epic of Gilgamesh. London: Penguin, 1960. Print.

Spar, Ira. “Gilgamesh.” Metropolitan Museum of Art. Metropolitan Museum of Art, n.d. Web. 1 June 2015.