Lugalbanda and the Anzud Bird

Anonymous / tradition · c. 18th century BC (Old Babylonian copies of an older Sumerian composition) · Nippur (Iraq) · epic

Stranded in the highlands, Lugalbanda wins the favor of the monstrous Anzud bird by feasting its chick, and the gift of superhuman speed he receives carries Uruk's stalled campaign against Aratta to success.