In those days, in those far-off days,

In those nights, in those far-off nights,

In those years, in those far-off years,

In olden times…

Did you see the sons of Sumer and Akkad?

I saw them.

How do they fare?

They drink water from the place of a massacre.

—Tablet XII, Epic of Gilgamesh

(Translated by Andrew George)