Uruk, Sumer: Reign of King Gilgamesh. * The great king Gilgamesh is Bartimaeus’s first named master. Bart serves him in the guise of a youthful spear-carrier, and helps him defeat the giant Humbaba. * Around this time Bartimaeus rebuilds the walls of Uruk, a feat that for 4,500 years remains one of his proudest boasts. Ever afterwards ‘Bartimaeus of Uruk’ is his favoured title.