Gilgamesh flood myth
| Gilgamesh tablet XI | |
|---|---|
| Material | clay |
| Size | Length: 15.24 cm (6.00 in) Breadth: 13.33 cm (5.25 in) Depth: 3.17 cm (1.25 in) |
| Writing | cuneiform |
| Created | 7th century BCE |
| Period/culture | Neo-Assyrian |
| Discovered | Kouyunjik |
| Present location | Room 55, British Museum, London |
| Identification | K.3375 |
The Gilgamesh flood myth is a partial narrative of the Gilgamesh Epic. It is one of three Mesopotamian Flood Myths alongside the one included in the Eridu Genesis, and an episode from the Atra-Hasis Epic. Many scholars believe that the Gilgamesh flood myth was added to Tablet XI in the "standard version" of the Gilgamesh Epic by an editor who used the flood story, which is described in the Epic of Atra-Hasis. A short reference to the flood myth is also present in the much older Sumerian Gilgamesh poems, from which the later Babylonian versions drew much of their inspiration and subject matter.