Literature

Sources

The Scribal Tradition. The oldest surviving literature in the world is written in the Sumerian language. Although these works may preserve parts of an ancient oral tradition, it is also possible that what was written was as fundamentally new as writing itself. Literacy was highly restricted in the ancient Near East. Only an elite could read and write. Most of the Sumerian literature that survives was written after about 2000 b.c.e., at a time when that language was no longer spoken by the general population but was maintained in schools and temples. Most people at that time spoke various Semitic languages, primarily Akkadian, which has its own literature. The creative process took place in a temple or palace, and it is possible that few ordinary people understood the meaning or imagery of the literature. Little is known about the poets. Few authors are named, and few works are attributed. A rare exception is the earliest known poet, the daughter of the Akkadian king Sargon, Enheduana, who wrote in about 2300 b.c.e.

The Earliest Sumerian and Akkadian Literature. The earliest writing, from the late fourth millennium b.c.e., is mostly economic and administrative in nature. There are also lexical lists—words arranged by theme such as kinds of animals, plants, or professions. Presumably learning exercises for the administrators, these lists continued to be copied for more than three thousand years as part of the scribal literary tradition. Some of these texts have been interpreted as early forms of literature, but the first real Sumerian narrative and poetic texts date from around 2500 b.c.e. and have been found in excavations at two main cities, Fara (ancient Shuruppak) and Tell Abu Salabikh (possibly ancient Eresh). These texts are extremely difficult to understand because the scribes supplied only some of the meaning, expecting the reader to understand and fill in the missing elements. In other words, the writing was a guide to meaning, not a representation of the actual spoken language. Some tablets include magical charms against diseases. One text describes the adventures of a legendary king of Uruk named Lugalbanda. Another text, known as the Instructions of Shuruppak, is proverbial advice given by a king to his son. Most texts, however, deal with mythological subjects. Some of these describe how the cosmos was created and ordered by the gods. These early texts were written in Sumerian, with one exception: a hymn to the sun god, written in a dialect of Akkadian and found in two versions, one at Fara and the other at Ebla in Syria. Its existence suggests that more early texts in Akkadian are yet to be discovered.

The Sumerian Revival. There is little evidence of a new literature during the Akkadian Empire (circa 2340 - circa 2200 b.c.e.), a dynamic imperial period whose vitality is clear in its art. Any literature (possibly written in Akkadian) of this period may have been expunged by the next dynasty. With the fall of the Akkadian Empire and the rise of the Third Dynasty of Ur (circa 2112 -circa 2004 b.c.e.), kings were celebrated in Sumerian poetry. The songs and poems of this dynasty were copied and adapted by later generations of scribes, and it is generally these later versions that survive. Among the most elaborate literary creations of this period are the Gudea Cylinders, A and B. These large clay drums, nearly two feet high, represent the longest and most-complex surviving Sumerian texts. They describe how the god Ningursu, patron deity of the state of Lagash, appeared to Gudea in a dream and instructed the ruler to build his temple E-ninnu in the capital city of Girsu (modern Tello). Although they are literary masterpieces, these works never entered the Mesopotamian scribal curriculum and would have been lost had they not been recovered by modern archaeologists.

Sumerian Literature in the Old Babylonian Period. The largest numbers of Sumerian compositions survive from the Old Babylonian period (circa 1894 - circa 1595 b.c.e.). By this time Sumerian was no longer spoken, but it was preserved as a written language for the scribal elite and used for monumental and religious texts. These texts include compositions that described a trainee scribe’s schooldays, but they may be idealized representations of school life. Many texts were selections from older works, and a large number concern earlier rulers of Mesopotamia, who date back to the Ur III period (circa 2112 - circa 2004 b.c.e.), particularly king Shulgi (circa 2094 - circa 2047 b.c.e.), who seems to have restructured much of the school curriculum to reflect the concerns of his dynasty. He was one of the few Mesopotamian kings who claimed to be able to read and write. It is likely that the heroic tales of legendary kings of Uruk, such as Enmerkar and Gilgamesh, were composed at this time because the Ur III kings traced their ancestry to the city of Uruk. Other texts were copied and expanded or adapted by Old Babylonian scribes. Tales of kings were shaped to convey specific ideas about kingship and human destiny. Hymns, such as the Lamentation over the Destruction of Sumer and Ur, were popular, and more than 120 hymns honoring most of the major deities are known. Some of the more interesting texts focus on the goddess Inana and the betrayal and death of her lover Dumuzi. Royal letters, which may or may not be authentic writings of the Ur III period and the succeeding Isin period (circa 2017 - circa 1794 b.c.e.), were also included in the curriculum. Also popular were debate poems in which opposites or complementary characters such as Summer and Winter, Silver and Copper, or Cattle and Grain, attempt to demonstrate verbally which is more important. From cities north of Nippur, such as Sippar and Kish, come specific cultic compositions written in Sumerian, but the use of a literary dialect known as Emesal is characteristic of that region. Differing in pronunciation from the main Sumerian literary tongue, the word Emesal may mean “thin tongue” and seems to have been reserved for a special group of priests and for the direct speech among women or goddesses in literary texts.

Akkadian Literature in the Second Millennium B.C.E. Although the Akkadian language had been written using cuneiform since the middle of the third mil

FLOOD STORIES

Before the advent of modern dams and water management on the flat plains of southern Mesopotamia, a rise of as little as a foot in the rivers or the sea covered miles of land with water. Cataclysmic floods were frequent and violent enough to become subjects for ancient Mesopotamian poets. Near Eastern archaeology does not confirm the historical occurrence of one major flood, and it is clear that for ancient Mesopotamians the stories about floods or storms represent no one actual event; rather the Flood is a metaphor for inescapable destruction.

The Epic ofAtra-basis

This story from the first half of the second millennium b.c.e. is concerned with the early history of mankind, in which the Flood is only one element. The tale begins with the minor gods complaining about their hard work. Enki, god of wisdom, provides the answer, advising that humans be created as servants for the gods. Seven men and seven women are formed by mixing clay with the blood of a god slain for the purpose. From the initial seven pairs, humanity quickly multiplies across the earth. Their noise, representing the breakdown of order, disturbs the sleep of the supreme god, Enlil, who tries to silence humanity by sending plagues, droughts, and famine against them. However, he is always frustrated by Enki, who instructs his servant, the mortal Atra-hasis (which means “Exceedingly Wise”), how to survive. Eventually Enlil sends a flood. Having sworn not to communicate directly with humans again, Enki gives advice to a reed wall, through which Atra-hasis listens. Atra-hasis builds a boat and fills it with his family and animals. For seven days and seven nights the flood destroys the world. Eventually the flood subsides, and Atra-hasis makes a burnt offering to the gods, who swarm “like flies” around the offering and realize that they need human servants. They decide, however, to limit the human population by making some women sterile, creating stillbirths, and introducing chastity. The story thus explains why life has been so harsh “since the flood.”

The Sumerian Deluge Myth

Written in the Sumerian language during the mid-second millennium b.c.e., this text describes the creation of humanity but also includes the foundation of kingship and cities and their re-establishment after the Flood. The tablet on which the text was inscribed is damaged, and the beginning and end are missing. The hero of the flood is Ziusudra (“Life of Long Days”), a king of the city of Shuruppak (modern Fara). The surviving text starts with Enki suggesting that humans, who have already been created, should come together to build cities. The new cities are inspected by Enki, and kingship is established in five of them—Eridu, Badtibira, Larak, Sippar, and Shuruppak—each dedicated to a particular deity. There is a break in the tablet, and then the story continues with the decision of the gods to bring about a great flood. One of the gods (probably Enki) warns Ziusudra, who finds a boat. After seven days and nights of flood, Ziusudra steps onto dry land and makes an offering to Utu (or Shamash), god of the sun and justice. Enlil relents, deciding not to destroy humanity. Ziusudra is rewarded with immortality and taken to the land of Dilmun, the place where the sun rises (a mythical paradise equated with the real island of Bahrain).

The Epic of Gilgamesh

In the late second millennium b.c.e.Epic of Gilgamesh, the account of the Flood represents only one element of the hero’s attempt to understand his mortality. Gilgamesh finds Uta-napishti (“He/I found life”), whom the gods made immortal after he survived the great Flood. Uta-napishti explains how Ea (Sumerian Enki) warned him of the coming catastrophe by speaking through a reed hut and brick wall. Uta-napishti then built a boat, telling his neighbors that he had to leave the city because Ellil (Sumerian Enlil) had rejected him. The boat was loaded with precious metals and all forms of life, including his family and artisans. The flood lasted six days and seven nights until all humanity—except the people on the boat—was destroyed, or returned to clay. Afterward Uta-napishti sent out a dove and then a swallow, both of which came back because they could find no place to perch. A raven, however, did not return, indicating that it had found land. Uta-napishti then made sacrifices to the gods, and they swarmed around like flies. However, Ellil was furious. Ea chastised Ellil, suggesting that if humans need control in the future, Ellil could send out the plague god Erra. In response Ellil makes Uta-napishti and his wife “like the gods” (that is, immortal). Uta-napishti brings his account to an end by advising Gilgamesh that mortality is the fate of humans.

Sources: Stephanie Dalley, trans., Myths from Mesopotamia: Creation, The Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others (Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press, 1989).

Andrew George, trans., The Epic of Gilgamesh: The Babylonian Epic Poem and Other Texts in Akkadian and Sumerian (London: Allen Lane, 1999).

Brian B. Schmidt, “Flood Narratives of Ancient Western Asia,” in Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, 4 volumes, edited by Jack M. Sasson (New York’Scribners, 1995), IV: 2337-2351.

lennium b.c.e., the real beginning of Akkadian literature was in the Old Babylonian period (circa 1894 - circa 1595 b.c.e.). Some of these texts were based on Sumerian myths and legends such as the Descent of lshtar into the Netherworld, adapted from the Sumerian Inana’s Descent to the Netherworld. Other Sumerian forms and themes, such as the Temple Hymns and the idea of divine kings, do not appear in Akkadian literature. As southern Mesopotamia was united under Semitic Amorite dynasties, new literary models began to appear in written Akkadian; many—such as the Epic of Gilgamesh, the story of Atra-basis, and the creation epic Enuma elish—were much broader in scope than the Sumerian works. Akkadian writings of this period also include theological speculations, such as the Dialogue of a Man with his God. Archaeologists have found hardly any Mesopotamian literary texts dating from some two hundred or three hundred years after the end of the Old Babylonian period (circa 1595 b.c.e.). However, by the fourteenth century b.c.e. the cuneiform script and Akkadian language were in use throughout the Near East, and some literary texts from this period have survived from the Hittite city of Hattusa in central Anatolia, Ugarit on the Syrian coast, and even Egypt.

Enuma elish: A National Epic. The poem known as Enuma elish (“When above”) explains the rise of Marduk to the position of supreme god in the Mesopotamian pantheon. It is often described as “The Babylonian Epic of Creation,” but creation is a small element in the poem. It was under Nebuchadnezzar I (circa 1125 - circa 1104 b.c.e.) that Marduk was first called “king of the gods,” suggesting that Enuma elish was probably composed at about this time. Surviving copies are all later in date. During the Late Babylonian period (610-539 b.c.e.) the text was recited, perhaps even enacted, as part of the New Year festival at Babylon. As in later Greek mythology the poem tells of an older generation of gods who attempt to destroy their offspring but who are defeated in battle.

Creation of Gods. The poem begins with the creation of generations of gods by mixing saltwater (Tiamat) and freshwater (Apsu):

When skies above were not yet named
Nor earth below pronounced by name,
Apsu, the first one, their begetter
And maker Tiamat, who bore them all,
Had mixed their waters together,
But had not formed pastures, nor discovered reed-beds;
When yet no gods were manifest,
Nor names pronounced, nor destinies decreed,
Then gods were born within them. (Dalley)

Noise and disorder among the new gods frustrates Apsu, who decides to destroy his offspring:

Apsu made his voice heard
And spoke to Tiamat in a loud voice,
“Their ways have become very grievous to me,
“By day I cannot rest, by night I cannot sleep.
“I shall abolish their ways and disperse them!” (Dalley)

Ea, the god of wisdom, knows of Apsu’s plans:

He (Ea) poured sleep upon him (Apsu) so that he was sleeping soundly,
Put Apsu to sleep, drenched with sleep.
Vizier Mummu the counselor (was in) a sleepless daze.
He (Ea) unfastened his belt, took off his crown,
Took away his mantle of radiance and put it on himself. He held Apsu down and slew him. (Dalley)

Making his home inside the waters of Apsu, Ea and his wife, Damkina, conceive Marduk, cleverest of the clever, sage of the gods. Marduk is so powerful that he causes flood waves that disturb Tiamat and the elder gods:

They (the elder gods) were fierce, scheming restlessly night and day.
They were working up to war, growling and raging.
They convened a council and created conflict.
Mother Hubur, who fashions all things,
Contributed an unfaceable weapon: she bore giant snakes,
Sharp of tooth and unsparing of fang(?).
She filled their bodies with venom instead of blood.
She cloaked ferocious dragons with fearsome rays
And made them bear mantles of radiance, made them godlike. (Dalley)

The goddess Tiamat’s army of gods and monsters marches against the younger gods, who are all afraid to join the battle, except Marduk. On condition that he is appointed king of the gods, Marduk offers to fight Tiamat. The young gods agree to his terms, and Marduk fashions his weapons: a bow and arrow, a mace, lightning, a battle net, and seven winds. He mounts his storm chariot, which is drawn by a team of four horses: Slayer, Pitiless, Racer, and Flyer:

Face to face they came, Tiamat and Marduk, sage of the gods.
They engaged in combat, they closed for battle. The Lord spread his net and made it encircle her, To her face he dispatched the imhullu-wind, which had been behind:
Tiamat opened her mouth to swallow it,
And he forced in the imhullu-wind so that she could not close her lips.
Fierce winds distended her belly,
Her insides were constipated and she stretched her mouth wide.
He shot an arrow which pieced her belly,
Split her down the middle and split her heart,
Vanquished her and extinguished her life.
He threw down her corpse and stood on top of her. (Dalley)

Tiamat’s army flees before Marduk, who catches them in his net. Next Marduk slices Tiamat in two and forms the roof of the sky from one half and the earth from the other. From Tiamat’s spittle he makes wind and rain and from her eyes pour the rivers Tigris and Euphrates. The gods crown Marduk as their king, and to relieve them of hard work Marduk creates humans as their servants, using blood from a slain monster. In gratitude the gods offer to build a home for Marduk. After two years his temple of E-sangila in Babylon has been created. The epic ends with a list of fifty honorific names of Marduk.

Gilgamesh. One of the greatest, perhaps the greatest, literary masterpiece from Mesopotamia is the Epic of Gilgamesh. According to Sumerian tradition, Gilgamesh (or as he is known in the earliest texts, Bilgames) was a ruler of the city of Uruk. His name is included on the Sumerian King List, composed around 2000 b.c.e., and, if the text is accurate, his position on that list places him around 2750 b.c.e. Nothing is known of this man, but later tradition describes him as a great warrior and builder of the walls of Uruk, which may have some basis in truth. Not long after 2700 b.c.e., Gilgamesh appeared in a list of gods. At the end of the third millennium b.c.e. memories of Gilgamesh were committed to writing in a series of short poems about his heroic achievements. Five of these Sumerian tales have survived and, as often with stories and epics, were known in antiquity by their incipit, that is, the first few words of their opening line: The Envoys of Akka; The Lord to the Living One’s Mountain; Hero in battle; In those days, in those far-off days; and The great wild bull is lying down.

The Envoys of Akka. Akka, the king of the city of Kish, demands that Uruk submit to him. Bilgames gathers an assembly of elders and argues that Uruk should go to war with Kish. After the elders reject his advice, Bilgames turns to the assembly of young men, who agree with their king. Akka and the forces of Kish lay siege to Uruk, whose army defeats the attackers. Bilgames recalls how Akka had once given him refuge and returns the favor by letting Akka go free.

The Lord to the Living One’s Mountain. Bilgames, in search of deeds of glory, journeys with his servant Enkidu and the young men of Uruk to the fabled Cedar Mountain in the east. On arrival Bilgames fells a cedar, waking Huwawa, the semi-divine guardian of the forest. After Bilgames tricks Huwawa into giving up his divine protection by promising him luxuries of the city, Enkidu cuts off the creature’s head.

Hero in battle. As Bilgames is sitting in judgment in Uruk, he is approached by Inana, the goddess of sexual love. The king rejects her, and Inana seeks vengeance by asking her father, the heaven god An, to send the Bull of Heaven (the constellation Taurus) to destroy Bilgames. An hesitates but eventually leads the Bull of Heaven to Uruk, where it eats all the vegetation and drinks the river dry. Inana watches as Bilgames and Enkidu kill the monster. The horns of the giant beast are dedicated to Inana in her temple.

In those days, in those far-off days. In her garden the goddess Inana has planted a willow tree from which she hopes one day to make furniture. Unfortunately, the tree becomes infested with evil creatures. Bilgames fells the tree and presents the wood to Inana. With some of the wood he makes two toys, which fall through a hole into the Netherworld, and Enkidu volunteers to fetch them. He is warned about the ruler of the Netherworld, the goddess Ereshkigal, who should be treated with respect, but he ignores the warning and is taken captive. The sun god Utu lifts the spirit of Enkidu from the Netherworld, and the spirit describes to Bilgames the gloomy conditions there, particularly for the dead who have no sons to provide offerings of water.

The great wild bull is lying down. Bilgames lies dying. Reviewing his heroic achievements, the gods question whether he should be made immortal. They decide Bilgames should die but on entering the Netherworld sit in judgment on the dead. He will, therefore, be commemorated among the living. Bilgames builds himself a tomb in the bed of the Euphrates River, and his household joins him there.

The Old Babylonian Version: Surpassing all other kings. Sometime early in the second millennium b.c.e. some of the various Gilgamesh traditions, Sumerian and perhaps Akkadian, oral or written, were probably transformed into a single composition. This Epic of Gilgamesh is known today as the Old Babylonian Version, but in ancient Mesopotamia it was called Surpassing all other kings. Written in the Babylonian dialect of Akkadian, it is not a translation of the Sumerian compositions but, instead, a unified poem focusing on the hero’s quest for immortality. The poem begins with a hymn of praise of Gilgamesh, who is presented as a superhuman, powerful oppressor of his people. In answer to the people’s prayers for help, the gods create Enkidu as a match for Gilgamesh in strength. This Enkidu is different from the earlier character in the Sumerian tales, where he is Bilgames’s servant. Initially, he is a wild man, hairy and animal-like. However, after seven days of making love with a temple prostitute, being bathed and clothed and consuming human food—bread and beer—he is transformed into a man worthy of meeting Gilgamesh. The two become friends and set out together to achieve fame by journeying to the Cedar Forest to do battle with Huwawa, whom they kill after initial hesitation. Enkidu dies, perhaps because he has helped in the killing of Huwawa or because he has completed the task of divert-

ing Gilgamesh to heroic activities befitting a king. Another innovation in the story line is that Gilgamesh is consumed with grief for his friend. Faced with the reality of death, he seeks not the sort of immortality achieved through fame but everlasting life itself. After a long journey Gilgamesh finds Uta-napishti, who has received immortality from the gods after he and his family survived the Flood. At this point in the story the tablets containing the Old Babylonian Version are fragmentary.

He who saw the deep. In the centuries following the Old Babylonian period, knowledge of the Epic of Gilgamesh spread into Anatolia, Syria, and the Levant. Fragments of the epic in Akkadian, Hittite, and Hurrian adaptations have been found. Dating to the fourteenth and thirteenth centuries b.c.e., they incorporate material not included in the Old Babylonian Version and are part of the later, so-called Standard Version. Late in the second millennium b.c.e. the text of the Epic of Gilgamesh seems to have become stabilized in form. Tradition credits this edition to a scribe called Sin-leqe-unnini, who lived around 1200 b.c.e. The text of this version is known mainly from seventh century b.c.e. copies in the library of the Assyrian king Ashur-banipal (668 - circa 627 b.c.e.) at Nineveh, but parts have been found at other sites, such as Nimrud, Assur, Babylon, and Uruk. In total the epic runs to eleven tablets with an appendix on a twelfth.

The Standard Version. This version starts with a summary of Gilgamesh’s achievements. He has both strength and wisdom—the essential attributes of a king. The prologue addresses the reader (not a listener) and says to inspect Gilgamesh’s building works, especially the great wall around Uruk, and then to find the chest containing a tablet of lapis lazuli inscribed with the tale of Gilgamesh and read it. The poet emphasizes at every opportunity the hardships that Gilgamesh had to face to complete his journey.

Journey to the Cedar Forest. The story proper starts as in the Old Babylonian Version. Gilgamesh is oppressing his people, and they pray to the gods, who answer with the creation of Enkidu as a rival to Gilgamesh. The story of the adventure to the Cedar Forest appears to locate it in the mountains of Lebanon, while in the Sumerian story it seems to be in the closer Zagros range, to the east of Mesopotamia. The purpose of the journey is expanded; the battle with the giant, now called Humbaba, is described as an attempt to destroy evil. It also appears that Enkidu knows killing Humbaba will bring down upon his slayer the wrath of the gods, but, nonetheless, he urges on the hesitant Gilgamesh. As an attempt to appease the gods, Gilgamesh and Enkidu cut some of the great cedars to make a door for the temple in Nippur and then head back to Uruk.

Defeating the Bull of Heaven. Back in Uruk, Gilgamesh washes and dresses in his finery, attracting the attention of the goddess Ishtar, who offers him marriage. Gilgamesh, however, rejects her and lists her various lovers, all of whom died. The furious Ishtar rushes to her father, the heaven god Anu and demands that he send the Bull of Heaven against Gilgamesh. Anu hesitates because the Bull would bring famine and destroy the world, but after Ishtar offers to feed the people from the stores in her temple, Anu allows the Bull of Heaven to attack Uruk, and the creature’s snorting opens up chasms into which the people of Uruk fall. Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill the Bull. As a final insult to the goddess, Enkidu tears off the Bull’s haunch and hurls it at Ishtar, who is standing on the city wall.

The Death of Enkidu. After a great celebratory banquet, Enkidu (according to the Hittite version) learns in a dream that the gods have decided he must die. After a twelve-day sickness, he dies. Gilgamesh buries his friend and erects a statue in his honor. Devastated by his friend’s death and his own inevitable end, he begins a journey to find the secret of immortality. He meets a scorpion man and his wife, who try to dissuade him, but he journeys deeper into the darkness at the edge of the world before emerging into a garden with trees covered in jewels. Here, Gilgamesh meets a divine tavern keeper called Siduri who also tries to persuade him not to go on. Eventually, however, she tells him how to reach the immortal Uta-napishti. By using a boatman, the hero crosses the Waters of Death and is greeted by Uta-napishti who explains why men have to die by recounting the story of the Flood.

The Flood. It is recognized that the Flood story was not part of the original epic and is drawn from an independent story, the myth of Atra-hasis. Having explained that the gods made men mortal to prevent them from becoming noisy and disturbing the natural order, which caused the gods to send the flood originally, Uta-napishti tests Gilgamesh: if Gilgamesh can stay awake for seven nights, he will prove he is worthy of immortality. But Gilgamesh falls asleep, and Uta-napishti’s wife bakes a loaf of bread each night and places it under the sleeping hero’s cheek. When he wakes, Gilgamesh sees seven loaves bearing his cheek impression and realizes that his goal of immortality is unreachable. However, Uta-napishti feels sorry for him and tells Gilgamesh about a plant that causes rejuvenation. The hero picks the plant from the bottom of the sea, but, while bathing in a pool, he loses it to a snake that immediately sloughs its skin as it is renewed. By recognizing that he cannot cheat death, Gilgamesh has achieved wisdom. He journeys back to Uruk, and the poet brings the story full circle with the same description of Uruk that began the epic— a description of the ordered world of a city and its king.

The twelfth tablet, which is a later addition to the Standard Version, is a translation of part of the Sumerian composition In those days, in those far-off days, in which Gilgamesh meets the spirit of Enkidu.

The First Millennium b.c.e.. The literary creations of the first millennium b.c.e. are generally revisions of those created in the second millennium, or they deal with the role and image of the king. One exception, however, is the Poem of Erra, esteemed in antiquity, a masterpiece of Akkadian epic literature. Although the last known dated cuneiform tablet is an astronomical text from Babylon in 75 C.E., a small number of Sumerian texts of the sort used in scribal training continued to be copied until the early centuries C.E.

Sources

Jean Bottro, “Akkadian Literature: An Overview,” in Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, 4 volumes, edited by Jack M. Sasson (New York: Scribners, 1995), IV: 2293-2303.

Stephanie Dalley, trans., Myths from Mesopotamia: Creation, The Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others (Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press, 1989),

Andrew George, trans., The Epic of Gilgamesh: The Babylonian Epic Poem and Other Texts in Akkadian and Sumerian (London: Allen Lane, 1999).

Piotr Michalowski, “The Earliest Scholastic Tradition,” Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B. C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, edited by Joan Aruz with Ronald Wallenfels (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003), pp. 451-456.

Michalowski, “Sumerian Literature: An Overview,” in Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, IV: 2279-2291.

Jeffrey H. Tigay, The Evolution of the Gilgamesh Epic (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1982).