The oldest story in all of world literature, the epic of 'Gilgamesh' was inscribed on stone tablets as early as 1700 BCE, a thousand years before the 'Iliad' - and was lost in the ruins of Nineveh for almost two millennia. The story of literature's first hero - king of Uruk in what is present-day Iraq - and his journey of self-discovery, 'Gilgamesh' reveals universal truths for today's polarized world.
Although there have been competent scholarly translations of 'Gilgamesh', until now there hasn't been a version that is a superlative literary text in its own right. Stephen Mitchell's lithe, muscular rendering allows us to enter an ancient masterpiece for the first time, to see how startlingly beautiful, intelligent, and alive it is. His insightful introduction provides historical, spiritual, and cultural context that reveals this age-old story to be more potent and fascinating than ever.
