1839 Austen Henry Layard set off with a friend to Ceylon, but in Mesopotamia, he was delayed by a reconnaissance of Assyrian mounds. It was from this reconnaissance of Nineveh that he found a buried library and lost literature. The importance of this find was not understood until much later when the clay tablets were deciphered. In 1853, Layard's collaborator and successor unearthed the part of the library that contained the tablets of the Gilgamesh Epic. Not until twenty years later, in December of 1872, did they fully understand what a spectacular find this was.
             The epic poem is about a man named Gilgamesh, who is two-thirds god and one-third mortal. There is a belief that he may have been a historical person. The story starts by introducing Gilgamesh, a tyrannical Babylonian king who ruled the city of Uruk. He is described as a wise man, which saw mysteries and knew secret things. He brought us a tale of the days before the flood, as after he returned from his journeys, he wrote the story on tablets of stone. Due to his oppressive nature as a ruler, his subjects cried out to the gods to create a challenger, one who could equal Gilgamesh in mind and body. In response, the gods created Enkidu, a wild brutish man. Enkidu was innocent of mankind and lived in the forest with the wild animals.
             Once Enkidu was introduced to the ways of a woman, he was filled with wisdom, and the thoughts of man were in his heart. No longer would the animals accept him as one of their own, so he went to live in the village. Enkidu challenged Gilgamesh to a wrestling match. When the contest fails to create a clear victor, Gilgamesh and Enkidu become close friends. The two become very close, seeing themselves as brothers and set off to find fame and glory. Accounts of their heroism and bravery in slaying dangerous beasts spread to many lands. When the two travelers return to Uruk, Ishtar (guardian deity of the city) proclaims her love for the heroic...