The Epic of Gilgamesh | Utnapishtim

Favored by the god Ea, Utnapishtim is warned of Enlil's plan to destroy humanity through a flood. Utnapishtim, at Ea's command, builds a huge square boat, seven decks high and one-hundred twenty cubits per side, in seven days. He seals it with pitch, stores away supplies, and ''loaded into her all that I had of gold and of living things, my family, my kin, the beasts of the field both wild and tame, and all the craftsmen" (1. 109). He rides out the six-day storm and then sets three birds free—a dove, a swallow, and a raven. When the raven does not return, he knows the crisis is over...

[The entire page is 256 words long]

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