Enkidu (Sumerian: 𒂗𒆠𒄠EN.KI.DU10) was a legendary figure in ancient Mesopotamian mythology, wartime comrade and friend of Gilgamesh, king of Uruk. Their exploits were composed in Sumerian poems and in the Akkadian Epic of Gilgamesh, written during the 2nd millennium BC. He is the oldest literary representation of the wild man, a recurrent motif in artistic representations in Mesopotamia and in Ancient Near East literature. The apparition of Enkidu as a primitive man seems to be a potential parallel of the Old Babylonian version (1300–1000 BC), in which he was depicted as a servant-warrior in the Sumerian poems.
Enkidu
Fighting scene between a beast and a man with horns, hooves and a tail, who has been compared to the Mesopotamian bull-man, suggestive of Indus–Mesopotamia relations. Mohenjo-daro (seal 1357), Indus Valley civilization.
Bronze sword with hilt depicting Gilgamesh and Enkidu slaying Humbaba (1200-800 BC)
Cylinder seal with Enkidu vanquishing the Bull of Heaven - Walters 42786 - Side G
Gilgamesh was a hero in ancient Mesopotamian mythology and the protagonist of the Epic of Gilgamesh, an epic poem written in Akkadian during the late 2nd millennium BC. He was possibly a historical king of the Sumerian city-state of Uruk, who was posthumously deified. His rule probably would have taken place sometime in the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period, c. 2900 – 2350 BC, though he became a major figure in Sumerian legend during the Third Dynasty of Ur.
Possible representation of Gilgamesh as Master of Animals, grasping a lion in his left arm and snake in his right hand, in an Assyrian palace relief (713–706 BC), from Dur-Sharrukin, now held in the Louvre
Seal impression of "Mesannepada, king of Kish", excavated in the Royal Cemetery at Ur (U. 13607), dated circa 2600 BC. The seal shows Gilgamesh and the mythical bull between two lions, one of the lions biting him in the shoulder. On each side of this group appears Enkidu and a hunter-hero, with a long beard and a Kish-style headdress, armed with a dagger. Under the text, four runners with beard and long hair form a human Swastika. They are armed with daggers and catch each other's foot.
Sculpted scene depicting Gilgamesh wrestling with animals. From the Shara temple at Tell Agrab, Diyala Region, Iraq. Early Dynastic Period, 2600–2370 BC. On display at the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad.
Mace dedicated to Gilgamesh, with transcription of the name Gilgamesh (ð’€ð’‰ˆð’‚µð’ˆ©) in standard Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform, Ur III period, between 2112 and 2004 BC