Year of Object(s) Creation: 1500 B.C.E. (approximate)
Estimated Value ($USD): 2000000
Object Type(s): Carving, Plaque or Tablet
Object Material(s): ceramic
Provenience Nation: Iraq
Provenience Location: The Royal Library of Ashurbanipal, Nineveh, Assyria (present day Iraq)
Year Removed from Findspot: 1853

Provenance
Start Year: 2021
End Year:
Circumstance of Acquisition: returned by government
Nation: Iraq
Location: National Museum in Baghdad, Iraq
Start Year: 2019
End Year: 2021
Circumstance of Acquisition: seized from museum by US agents
Nation: United States
Location: possession of United States government
Start Year: 2014
End Year: 2019
Circumstance of Acquisition: bought in private sale for $1.67 million
Nation: United States
Location: Museum of the Bible (owned by Hobby Lobby)
Start Year: 2007
End Year: 2014
Circumstance of Acquisition: bought at auction various times
Nation: United States
Location: various
Start Year: 2003
End Year: 2007
Circumstance of Acquisition: bought from coin dealer in London
Nation: United States
Location: Anon antiquities dealer
Start Year:
End Year: 2003 (approximate)
Circumstance of Acquisition: unknown
Nation: United Kingdom
Location: Anon coin dealer in London, UK
Start Year:
End Year: 1991
Circumstance of Acquisition: unknown
Nation: Iraq
Location: Iraqi museum

Iraqi Gilgamesh Dream Tablet


Description:


Case Status: Object(s) relinquished
Year Claim Initiated: 2019
Year Claim Resolved: 2021
Means of Resolution: Action by Respondent's Govt.

Complainant Name: Republic of Iraq
Complainant Nation: Iraq
Complainant Nation Economy: Developing
Complainant Type: Public: Government

Respondent Name: Museum of the Bible, Washington, D.C.
Respondent Nation: United States
Respondent Nation Economy: Developed
Respondent Type: Private: Institution

Reference Links:

Files:

Editor's Notes:
One of the world’s oldest surviving works of literature and one of the oldest religious texts; part of a 12-tablet collection. Editor: Eliza Rodi. WHERE IS IT NOW? The tablet is currently housed at the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad, Iraq, and is usually exhibited there. The museum is undergoing renovations as of June 2026.