Historical Context of Gilgamesh Gilgamesh tells of a 1. inspired by historical events of ancient times. Gilgamesh was a real 2. of Uruk, now modern-day Iraq. He ruled around 3. BCE. His reputation as the powerful king of Uruk inspired the legend told in Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was written in Akkadian on stone tablets. Archaeologists discovered the tablets in the 4. .