Visitors to the show are greeted by an imposing figure long considered to be Gilgamesh.

WSJ: The Ur-Metropolis | Uruk | Pergamon Museum | By A.J. Goldmann

In the professions they choose, it is unlikely that they will need to quote Rousseau, or recount the Epic of Gilgamesh.

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Religious history is replete with stories of floods, from Noah to Gilgamesh.

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The exhibit wisely takes Gilgamesh as a point of departure.

WSJ: The Ur-Metropolis | Uruk | Pergamon Museum | By A.J. Goldmann

It is unclear from archaeological evidence whether Gilgamesh actually existed.

WSJ: The Ur-Metropolis | Uruk | Pergamon Museum | By A.J. Goldmann

According to tradition, Gilgamesh himself erected the imposing city walls, made up of more than 300 million bricks and measuring 26 feet high and almost four miles in length.

WSJ: The Ur-Metropolis | Uruk | Pergamon Museum | By A.J. Goldmann

"Very few people actually know about Uruk, but everyone's heard about Gilgamesh, " said Mr. Wartke, meaning both the king and the epic that contains a flood narrative similar to the Bible's.

WSJ: The Ur-Metropolis | Uruk | Pergamon Museum | By A.J. Goldmann

He could slice up Baal or take out Gilgamesh.

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The rhythm and rhyme helped aid the memories of those who passed along the stories, a process that also gave us the beautiful imagery in the Iliad, The Odyssey, Beowulf, the Vedas, the Bible, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and many others.

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