This book is an anthology of science fiction and fantasy short stories. The stories are by different authors, have different characters and settings, and are written in very different styles. However, the one recurring idea is the Ur-Bar, a bar that travels through space and time. Its bartender is the legendary Gilgamesh, who cannot leave the bar. The stories mainly deal with the lives of characters from various places and time periods. However, these characters interact with Gilgamesh to varying degrees during their stories. The individual stories are as varied as an emperor meeting with a god to a time traveling scientist examining past human life. Gilgamesh and the bar tie the anthologys stories together.