Which Mesopotamian epic contains the flood story featuring Utnapishtim, a parallel to Noah’s Ark?

The Epic of Gilgamesh contains the Mesopotamian flood story featuring Utnapishtim, a parallel to Noah’s Ark.

In the flood episode, the god Ea warns Utnapishtim to build a large boat and preserve living creatures and skilled people. Utnapishtim releases birds to test whether the waters have receded, and he eventually offers a sacrifice after leaving the boat. These motifs resemble parts of the Genesis account, though the characters, gods, setting, and narrative details differ.

The Epic of Gilgamesh is preserved on clay tablets written in cuneiform. Its best-known form comes from the Standard Babylonian version, associated with the first millennium BCE, while earlier related flood traditions are even older. The flood episode is often compared with Genesis because both belong to the wider ancient Near Eastern flood-story tradition.

Utnapishtim is not Noah under another name. He is a separate character in Mesopotamian literature, and the Epic of Gilgamesh has its own cultural and religious framework.