Gilgamesh is a born leader, but in an attempt to control his growing arrogance, the Gods create Enkidu, a wild man, his equal in strength and courage. Enkidu is trapped by a temple prostitute, civilised through sexual experience and brought to Gilgamesh. They become best friends and battle evil together.

'A powerful translation' The Telegraph 'As narrative verse, this Gilgamesh entrances and enthrals.' Independent 'Stephen Mitchell's Gilgamesh is a wonderful version' Harold Bloom Discover the foundational work of world literature - the world's oldest epic poem, vividly translated by Stephen Mitchell. Gilgamesh is a born leader, the king of Uruk. But he is arrogant. To control Gilgamesh, the Gods create Enkidu, a wild man, his equal in strength and courage. They are destined to come to conflict - and yet together they could rid the world of evil, and Gilgamesh may finally discover the one secret the Gods have kept from humanity: the gift of eternal life. Written in the second millennium B.C. the Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the most important surviving works of ancient literature, a thousand years older than Homer's Iliad and Odyssey. A core influence on religion, culture and the heroic tradition, it is essential reading to understand the birth of ancient civilisations.