The Epic of Gilgamesh
This is the story of Gilgamesh, King of Kings, who brought back knowledge from before the flood - who loved and lost his companion Enkidu and had to find out why we die.
The Epic of Gilgamesh was written on clay tablets over four thousand years ago, in what is today Baghdad Iraq - the Biblical Garden of Eden between the Tigris and the Euphrates.
In writing my version I have kept as close as possible to the original as we have it in Heidels' 1946 interlinear translation. I have also used my experience of ten years telling the story aloud to create this original telling. I am in debt to Thorkild Jacobsen, John Gardner, Elizabeth Barker (who introduced me to Gilgamesh in a night course forty years ago) and all the other great versions. Many have added material to smooth the text out and deal with fragments and omissions - I have hewn to the line and you can find each line in Heidel with the exception of the reconstructed final coda.
The Epic of Gilgamesh… I have puzzled over it for years and the mystery only gets more powerful: enjoy the journey.
We will be adding a series of audio blogs that will work through the story and give commentary and discuss sources.
This is a Lumen Arts Audio Book 2012.
Produced and directed by Nanette Perrotte with an original version by Sebastian Lockwood and read by Sebastian Lockwood.
Read more...