Ancient Mesopotamia and Epic of Gilgamesh

The Epic of Gilgamesh andAncient Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia– Geography (circa 4000 BC )

• Mesopotamia means “the land between the rivers.”

• It is located in an agriculturally rich region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (also known as the “Fertile Crescent” or “cradle of civilizations”.

• It was located in the region known today as Iraq as well as parts of Iran.

Mesopotamia’s Ruling Societies from 5000 BCE – 600 BCE

S

Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)

Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)

2. Government and Society

Sumerians lived in city-states. These cities were walled (fortified) for protection and surrounded by

vast, open land.

The largest city-states were Ur, Uruk, and Lagash. The Sumerians never developed a

central, unifying government between the three, leaving them vulnerable to attack.

Sumerian society developed a three-level classsystem (nobles, middle class, peasants).

Sumerian City States

3. Religious Beliefs

-The Sumerians (and later the Babylonian people) worshipped a pantheon of gods and goddesses.

-Regardless of one’s actions in life, they did not believe in life after death.

They believed that after one dies there is only emptiness.

Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)

Anu – father of gods and god of the sky (similar to Zeus)

Enlil – god of the air

Utu – sun god; lord of truth and justice

4. Cultural Achievements

Developments in math and science – A precise 12 month calendar, the concept of zero, “Pythagorean theorem”

Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)

Sophisticated technology –terraced temples (ziggurats), wheeled vehicles, sail boats, animal-drawn plows.

A Ziggurat.

World’s first writing system – cuneiform.

Formed by reed markings on wet clay tablets.

The Epic of Gilgamesh, the first work of fiction ever recorded, was etched on

stone tablets in cuneiform.

History of Epic of

Gilgamesh

While there is no evidence that the events in the epic actually happened, there was a Gilgamesh who ruled the Sumerian dynasty of Uruk in 2,700 BCE

The Epic of Gilgamesh, the first work of fiction ever recorded, was etched on over 40,000 clay tablets in cuneiform in 2,000 BCE.

Akkadians (2100 - 2000 BC)

The Akkadian people easily take over Sumerian culture – perhaps because of Sumer’s lack of a unified government.

However, Sumerian culture is main-tained through these shifts in power.

Under their king, Sargon, the Akkadians produce a version of Gilgamesh.

Babylonians (2000-1700 BC)

The Babylonians recognized the value of Sumerian culture and adopted much of it as

their own.

Sumerian became a literary language (much like Latin

today).

Hanging Gardens of Nebuchadnezzar

King Nimrod’s Tower of Babel

Code of Hammurabi

Hittites (1700-700 BC)

The Hittites may have been among the first to work meteoric iron for use as a precious metal in such things as thrones and ceremonial daggers. There is no evidence that they know how to produce iron cost-effectively enough, and to make it hard enough, to use as weapons of war.Probably the most important Hittite contribution is to modern history. Hittite diplomatic tablets tended to include long preambles about negotiations that had gone before, and about the history of relations between Hatti and other nations.

Assyrians (700-600 BC)

In first millennium – under the Assyrian empire –

the Epic of Gilgameshtook on its final written

form.

The final translation was added to the King’s library at Nineveh.

After the destruction of Nineveh by the Chaldeans in 612 BCE, the epic was lost until the library was excavated in 1872 CE.

KEY FACTS

Enkidu - Companion and friend of Gilgamesh. Hairy-bodied and brawny, Enkidu was raised by animals. Even after he joins the civilized world, he retains many of his undomesticated characteristics. Enkidu looks much like Gilgamesh and is almost his physical equal. He aspires to be Gilgamesh’s rival but instead becomes his soul mate. The gods punish Gilgamesh and Enkidu by giving Enkidua slow, painful, inglorious death for killing the demon Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven.

Shamhat - The temple prostitute who tames Enkidu by seducing him away from his natural state. Though Shamhat’s power comes from

her sexuality, it is associated with civilization rather than nature. She represents the

sensuous refinements of culture—the sophisticated pleasures of lovemaking, food,

alcohol, music, clothing, architecture, agriculture, herding, and ritual.

Utnapishtim - A king and priest of Shurrupak, whose name translates as “He Who Saw Life.” By the god Ea’s

connivance, Utnapishtim survived the great deluge that almost destroyed all life on Earth by building a great boat that carried him, his family, and one of every living creature

to safety. The gods granted eternal life to him and his wife.

Urshanabi - The guardian of the mysterious “stone things.”

Urshanabi pilots a small ferryboat across the Waters of Death to the Far Away place where Utnapishtim lives. He loses this privilege when he

accepts Gilgamesh as a passenger, so he returns with him

to Uruk.

Anu - The father of the gods and the god of the firmament.

Aruru - A goddess of creation who fashioned Enkidu from clay and her spittle.

Ea - The god of fresh water, crafts, and wisdom, a patron of humankind. Ea lives in Apsu, the primal waters below the Earth.

Partial List of Important Deities and Demons:

Humbaba - The fearsome demon who guards the Cedar Forest forbidden to mortals. Humbaba’s seven garments produce an aura that paralyzes with fear anyone who would withstand him. He is the personification of awesome natural power and menace. His mouth is fire, he roars like a flood, and he breathes death, much like an erupting volcano. In his very last moments he acquires personality and pathos, when he pleads cunningly for his life.

Tammuz - The god of vegetation and fertility, also called the Shepherd. Born a mortal, Tammuz is the husband of Ishtar.

Enlil - God of earth, wind, and air. A superior deity, Enlil is not very fond of humankind.

Shamash - The sun god, brother of Ishtar, patron of Gilgamesh. Shamash is a wise judge and lawgiver.

Ishtar - The goddess of love and fertility, as well as the goddess of war. Ishtar is frequently called the Queen of Heaven. Capricious and mercurial, sometimes she is a nurturing mother figure, and other times she is spiteful and cruel. She is the patroness of Uruk, where she has a temple.

Ereshkigal -Terrifying

queen of the underworld.

Ninsun - The mother of Gilgamesh, also called the Lady Wildcow Ninsun. She is a minor goddess, noted for her wisdom. Her husband is Lugulbanda.

Importance of Gilgamesh

Earliest known literary work.

Contains an account of the Great Flood and the story of a virtuous man named Utnapishtimwho survived (likely the source for the biblical story of Noah)

Expresses values of ancient civilization – such as the belief in divine retribution for transgressions such as violence, pride, the oppression of others, and the destruction of the natural world

Let’s take a QUIZ! ^o^

A. A tyrant who oppresses his peopleB. A holy man who consults the godsC. A wise sage who rules with fairnessD. A fierce warrior who protects his city

1. What kind of king is Gilgamesh? How is he first described to us?

2. Why did the gods create Enkidu?

A. To defeat and overthrow GilgameshB. To stop Gilgamesh from finding a brideC. To be a counterforce to GilgameshD. To prevent Gilgamesh from destroying

them

3. What did the trapper do after first seeing Enkidu?

A. Started a fire to drive the creature away

B. Warned the people in the village of a monster

C. Set larger traps to catch this beast

D. Told his father he had seen a giant man

4. How did the animals react to Enkiduafter he was visited by Shamhat, the temple prostitute?

A. Attacked him and drove him into the woods

B. Appointed him as their protector from hunters

C. Rejected him and no longer regarded him as kin

D. Asked him to lead them to find food and water

5. What objects are featured in Gilgamesh's dreams prior to meeting Enkidu?

A. A meteor and an axeB. A bull and a cartC. A sword and a shieldD. A mountain and a lion

6. What was Gilgamesh doing that angered Enkidu to challenge him to a fight?

A. Collecting heavy taxes from farmersB. Enslaving peasants for his own

amusementC. Sleeping with newly married bridesD. Putting the elderly of the city to

death

7. What did Enkidu do after losing a fight with Gilgamesh?

A. Agreed to become his personal servant

B. Acknowledged his greater strengthC. Returned in shame to the wildernessD. Begged him to spare his life

8. What did Gilgamesh propose that he and Enkidu do to gain fame and recognition?

A. Journey to the Cedar Forest to defeat Humbaba

B. Cross the Euphrates to conquer Shurrupak

C. Liberate Mesopotamia from the rule of Ea

D. Climb the mountains of Mashu to find Shamhat

9. What did Ninsun do before Gilgamesh and Enkidu left on their quest?

A. Prayed for their safetyB. Told them a cautionary taleC. Obtained weapons for useD. Packed food for them

10. Gilgamesh dreams of a mountainslide and a fiery storm. What does Enkidu tell him these dreams have predicted?

A. That they will be victorious in their questB. That they should choose another pathC. That they must return to the city quicklyD. That they will encounter terrible weather

THANK YOU!

1.A2.C3.D4.C5.A

6. C7. B8. A9. A10. A

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