Product Description

The ancient civilization of Mesopotamia thrived between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates over 4,000 years ago. The myths collected here, originally written in cuneiform on clay tablets, include parallels with the biblical stories of the Creation and the Flood, and the famous Epic of Gilgamesh, the tale of a man of great strength, whose heroic quest for immortality is dashed through one moment of weakness. Recent developments in Akkadian grammar and lexicography mean that this new translation, complete with notes, a glossary of deities, place-names, and key terms, and illustrations of the mythical monsters featured in the text, will replace all other versions.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #25223 in Books
• Published on: 2008-12-11
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

Customer Reviews

An ancient collection of epics
Mesopotamian mythology - where to begin? Well I've searched for a while and this one seems to be the most complete all round offering. The best thing about this book is that it focuses solely on the myths, leaving out any dry theoretical rabble as to what the origins and meanings might be. Here we are given the roots of eastern religion itself in its utmost original form.

Two different versions of the epic of Gilgamesh, Ishtar's descent to the underworld, the creation myth, the flood and numerous others are included. Also a glossary of gods, places and key terms I found a very useful inclusion.

All in all make for an epic read that kept me turning the pages long into the night. The dictation is quite intense and impressively visual for something that was written about 6000 years ago. If you're interested in ancient religion then this should sate you hunger for a direct untampered with translation. Of course there are occasionaly fragments missing in the stories from damage to the tablets but that shouldn't put you off.

I doubt there is any better book on the subject.

men in cuneiform
This, though billed as an edition for the general reader, really isn't. The texts, instead of being worked up into a continuous narrative as in some other versions, are presented exactly as they appear in the original sources: disjointed, repetitive, incomplete. Sadly, the Epic of Gilgamesh is particularly affected by this. Thus whatever the merits of the translation, which I'm not qualified to judge, this is not something you can just sit and read as entertainment. Since it is avowedly not a scholarly edition either, it's hard to see who it's going to please.