Art & Culture. The greatest literary work of ancient civilization is The Epic of Gilgamesh

I would have to say the greatest literary work of ancient civilization would have to be The Epic of Gilgamesh written by the Sumerians. It's the oldest known literary work on this planet. It was written on cuneiform tablets around 1900 B.C.E and found in the library of the Assyrian king. I feel it's the foundation for epic stories throughout civilization and shows that mankind has had a very vivid imagination since day one. It's a legend written about Sumer's most famous King, Gilgamesh and is written hundreds of years after his death. In the story he is king of Uruk, part human and part god and goes on different adventures throughout the story. Enkidu was a primitive man sent by the god of Anu who eventually becomes best friends with Gilgamesh and they go on epic journeys together even though they fought each other at first. After one journey, where the dynamic duo kills the Bull of Heaven, the gods retaliate by sending an illness to Enkidu leading to his death. Gilgamesh was devastated by this and tries to find the secret of everlasting life from the only immortal, Utnapishtim. He fails but learns that he can't live forever but humankind will.

What's really interesting about this story is that it has many similarities to the Christian bible, such as the serpent in the Garden of Eden.  In the The Epic of Gilgamesh, Enkin, god of water, eats eight plants that Ninhursag, the mother-goddess had planted. Infuriated, Ninhursag curses Enki to die for his actions. This part of the story is similar to Adam and Eve being punished by God for eating from the forbidden tree. Also, the story of the flood is similar. Enki notifies Utnapishtim that the gods are going to kill all the humans for their intolerable ways and that he should build a boat to save his family. In the bible, Noah is instructed by God to build an arch because he was going to wipe mankind off the earth because of their wicked ways. The stories are not exactly the same but are to similar and I think Sumerian literature has found its way into the bible through out civilization. How it exactly did it happen? I have no clue.   

This story leads me to conclude that this literature influenced many stories ‘til this day. For example, The Lord of the Rings epic trilogy is similar to this story in my opinion. It's about Frodo and his buddy Sam going on an adventure fighting weird monsters and facing life's obstacles to save mankind and that compares to the topic. It's a journey about good vs. evil, power of friendship, destiny, loyalty, and many similarities to the topic. Until we find previous literature that has similar stories, I believe The Epic of Gilgamesh paved the way for it all.        

Carlos Rodriguez