Samuel Noah Kramer (1897–1990)

A book first published in the 1940s and updated in 1966. As a result I imagine there has been some more progress on finding and translating these myths. that said, Kramer is still a recognised leader in the field of Sumerian studies and his work is very informative, if somewhat dry and difficult to read as it seems to be written for the university student/ expert . I gained a good foundation knowledge of how Sumerian writing and mythology developed, as well as the significant civilisation milestones first achieved by these people. The relationship of gods to the various Sumerian city states and therir place both the pantheon of gods as well as how this facilitated the management of relationships between cities was very insightful. A good book to understand the basics of Sumerian civilisation and the development of their myths.… (more)