The Gilgamesh Epos in pictures

by Hugo de Reede

Hugo de Reede (1929-2019), artist and archaeological illustrator has worked in Syria for many years. Gripped by the Gilgamesh Epos and the philosophy narrated in the epic, he created a pictorial book, re-telling the account of Gilgamesh and the eternal mystery of death. The style of drawing in the book suits the regional art in a remarkable manner and with a humorous touch that is fitting for the region’s storytelling tradition.

124 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication April 1, 2026

Reviews

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely and fun retelling of the Epic of Gilgamesh. It hits all the main key points of the epic, while filling you in on some extra information in the epilogue. I enjoyed the artwork a lot. The colors are muted with make the more vivid colors like green and red jump out at you.

The only real downside I found is the list of books for further study of the Gilgamesh story to be lacking. There are some really good books listed, but I feel more could have been added. I also found it as shame that there is no reference to Gilgamesh's father, Lugalbanda in any point in the story or the epilogue. As he appears in Gilgamesh's dreams, and there's a connection between Lugalbanda and Ishtar/Inanna in Lugalbanda's stories (Epics of the Sumerian kings. The matter of Aratta.) as well.