The Blade of Gilgamesh. Jeff Edwards

sleepless nights wondering what manner of an excuse she could conjure up to satisfy her superiors.

      But what lay ahead was not her current problem. Heidi concentrated on her notes, and studied the two men before her.

      The sooner they had the information they sought, the sooner she could return to her home to face the music.

      ‘The first part,’ she continued, ‘is the part of history that cannot be confirmed by the normal means. We know the names because we have them in writings that have come from other sources, and therefore we must assume that their part in the history must be correct. Their words and their actions we can be less sure of, and therefore we must regard this portion of the saga as only legend.’

      ‘The second part of the sword’s saga is much clearer. Here we have actual people whose words, actions and intentions can be either confirmed or at the very least guessed at using supporting evidence from a variety of other sources. This part we can clearly refer to as the true history of the sword.’

      Ilmann nodded at the woman, ‘Begin.’

      ***

      ‘From tablets dating to about 2500BC we are told that Gilgamesh was a king of kings, ruling the Sumarian Empire from its capital in Uruk. He is regarded as almost divine, being two thirds a God and one third human. The tablets describe him as the handsomest of men with a stature that only Aruru, the goddess of creation, could have designed. He is strong, proud, and none would dare raise their sword against him.’

      ‘None that is, until the coming of Enkidu.’

      ‘Enkidu was said to be the equal in strength to Gilgamesh. He was a wild man living with the animals in the forest and learning from them.’

      ‘However, a trapper complained to Gilgamesh that Enkidu was interfering with their trade and demanded that he rid the forest of the wild man.’

      ‘Fearing that the wild man might slay Gilgamesh, Aruru had a sword forged that would give the king an edge over any opponent. It is said that the sword was fashioned from the very stars and whoever possessed the weapon was unbeatable in combat.’

      ‘However, Gilgamesh was also a wise ruler as well as a brave one. Instead of challenging Enkidu to battle he sent the trapper back to the forest along with a harlot named Shamhat.’

      ‘Having never experienced sex before Enkidu was enthralled by the woman, and when she chose to return to Uruk, Enkidu followed.’

      ‘Gilgamesh welcomed Enkidu and the pair became close friends as had been predicted in two dreams that Gilgamesh had experienced.’

      ‘Together, Gilgamesh and Enkidu experienced many adventures, and the great sword protected the king, even when travelling to the ends of the earth and facing implacable foes.’

      ‘The tablets do not describe how or where Gilgamesh died, but the distances he travelled and the number of adventures he had must mean that he lived a long and healthy life.’

      ***

      ‘We are fortunate to have the tablets of Gilgamesh, and the origins of the sword, but of the generations that followed we know little.’

      ‘Kingdoms rose, flourished and then died, to be replaced by others in this most bountiful of regions between the two great rivers, and we must assume that the sword was treated with great reverence and passed from one generation of ruler to the next until the time of the great Persian Empire.’

      ‘This empire came into being when Cyrus II, called ‘The Great’, united various Persian and Iranian groups and revolted against the leader of the Median Empire in 550BC. Over the next few years Cyrus set about expanding his empire and it is said that the power of Gilgamesh’s sword was a deciding factor in many battles. Most knew the legend and quaked in fear at the approach of an army whose leader wielded that sword.’

      ***

      ‘The Persian Empire lasted for many generations and prospered, but a cloud gathered on Persia’s border in the state of Macedonia.’

      ‘Following in his father Philip’s footsteps Alexander of Macedonia, also called ‘The Great’, gathered a force from the combined states of Greece and swept into Asia, subduing all before him.’

      ‘The Persian Empire was led at that time by Darius III, and as Alexander crossed the Hellesport the Persian leader failed to gather his vast army to meet the invaders in battle. And it came to pass that Alexander was able to defeat an Achaemenid army at Granicus, and by the following year he had conquered most of Asia Minor and reached as far as Cilicia.’

      ‘Darius III attempted to send letters of friendship to the victorious Alexander, and even offered the young man the hand of his daughter in marriage. Alexander refused, and Darius was left with no option than to finally take the field against Alexander. In his haste to do battle he had left Gilgamesh’s sword behind in Babylon, and his army was defeated at Issus on the 1st of October, 331BC.’

      ‘Too late he had realized that without the sword his empire would be lost. Determined to retrieve the sword and turn the tide of battle, Darius turned his chariot and fled the field to return to Babylon, abandoning his wife and family as he did so.’

      ‘He had travelled as far as Ecbatana when an advance guard led by Alexander himself came into sight. Seeing that it was Alexander who was charging down upon them his guard fled in terror, and with disaster about to befall them, his own courtiers struck Darius down in the vain hope that their act of betrayal would ensure their own lives would be saved.’

      ‘Darius died before Alexander could reach him, and as an act of respect the victorious Alexander sent his body to Persepolis to be buried in the royal tombs, just as the kings of Persia before him.’

      ***

      ‘Alexander then moved on toward the city of Babylon whose occupants crowded the city walls in apprehension. All were convinced that their city was about to be sacked by the victorious Macedonians.’

      ‘In a misguided effort to save the city, Pagophanes the head of the city treasury, opened the gates and surrendered.’

      ‘He brought out with him the Sword of Gilgamesh and presented it to Alexander, explaining the nature of the gift and relating the story of its creation.’

      ‘Alexander readily accepted the sword and the city’s surrender, especially as he had no intention of sacking a valuable prize like Babylon.’

      ***

      ‘Across the Middle East on into India, Alexander and his army crushed all who stood in their way, and the Greek culture spread with it.’

      ‘Finally, Alexander turned for home, but he only travelled as far as Babylon. It seems life in the Persian capital was much to his liking and Alexander quickly adopted many of its fashions and way of life.’

      ‘But all his great deeds came to a sudden end when Alexander died on November the 6th, 323BC without an heir.’

      ‘Under normal circumstances war might have broken out amongst those in command of the Greek army to see who would succeed Alexander, but such was the discipline he had ingrained upon his men that his four commanders came together and agreed to divide the empire between them.’

      ‘Persia was given to Seleucis, whose descendants formed the Seleucid Empire. India and much of the lands to the east of Persia revolted and returned to local rulership, while Macedonia was claimed by Alexander’s family. The Greek cities formed themselves into leagues for their mutual defence under the control of competing generals.’

      ‘The final and most important part of Alexander’s empire was Egypt, and this was allocated to his most senior general, Ptolemy, who became the first in a line of Pharaohs lasting 300 years, all of whom were named Ptolemy and their women Cleopatra.’

      ‘With Ptolemy to Egypt went Alexander’s body as well as Gilgamesh’s sword of destiny.’

      Chapter 7

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