In the Epic of Gilgamesh, how many days and nights did the flood last?

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the flood lasts six days and seven nights. The duration appears in Tablet XI, in the account told by Utnapishtim to Gilgamesh.

The storm is described as devastating and overwhelming, with the gods themselves reacting to its force. After the flood subsides, Utnapishtim’s boat comes to rest on Mount Nimush, also called Mount Nisir in translations and discussions of the poem.

Utnapishtim then releases birds to test whether the waters have fallen. The sequence includes a dove, a swallow, and a raven in the standard version, though translations can vary in wording and bird identification.

This duration should not be confused with the biblical Genesis figures. Genesis describes 40 days and nights of rain and separately says the waters prevailed for 150 days. The Epic of Gilgamesh is a separate Mesopotamian work with its own chronology.