6The EPIC OF GILGAMESH is the oldest story that has come down to us through the ages of history. It predates the BIBLE, the ILIAD and the ODYSSEY. The EPIC OF GILGAMESH relates the tale of the fifth king of the first dynasty of Uruk (in what is modern day Iraq) who reigned for one hundred and twenty-six years, according to the ancient Sumerian King List. GILGAMESH was first inscribed in cuneiform writing on clay tablets by an unknown author during the Sumerian era and has been described as one of the greatest works of literature in the recounting of mankind's unending quest for immortality.