Code Of Hammurabi

Information about Code Of Hammurabi

An inscription of the Code of Hammurabi.

View of the bas-relief image at the top of the stele.

The Code of Hammurabi (also known as the Codex Hammurabi and Hammurabi's Code) was created ca. 1760 BC (middle chronology) and is one of the earliest extant sets of laws, and one of the best preserved examples of this type of document from ancient Babylon. It was created by the sixth Babylonian King, Hammurabi.^[1] Earlier collections of laws include the codex of Ur-Nammu, king of Ur (ca. 2050 BC), the Codex of Eshnunna (ca. 1930 BC) and the codex of Lipit-Ishtar of Isin (ca. 1870 BC).^[2]

At the top of the stele is an image of a Babylonian god (thought to be either Marduk, or Shamash), with the King of Babylon presenting himself to the god, with his right hand raised to his mouth as a mark of respect.<ref name="louvre1" />

The Hammurabi stele image is done in bas-relief on basalt, and the text completely covered the bottom portion of the stele with the laws, written in cuneiform script. The text contains a list of crimes and their various punishments, as well as settlements for common disputes and guidelines for citizens' conduct. The Code does not provide opportunity for explanation or excuses, though it does imply one's right to present evidence. The stele was openly displayed for all to see; thus, no man could plead ignorance of the law as an excuse. Scholars, however, presume that few people could read in that era, as literacy was primarily the domain of scribes. For a comprehensive summary of the laws, see Babylonian law.

History

Hammurabi (ca. 1810 BC – 1750 BC) believed that he was chosen by the gods to deliver the law to his people. In the preface to the law code, he states, "Anu and Bel called by name me, Hammurabi, the exalted prince, who feared God, to bring about the rule of righteousness in the land."^[3]

The laws numbered from 1 to 282 (numbers 13 and 66-99 are missing) and are inscribed in Old Babylonian cuneiform script on the eight-foot tall stela.^[4]^[5] It was discovered in December 1901 in Susa, Elam, which is now Khuzestan, Iran, where it had been taken as plunder by the Elamite king Shutruk-Nahhunte in the 12th century BC.^[6] It is currently on display at the Louvre Museum in Paris.<ref name="louvre1" />

The code is often pointed to as the first example of the legal concept that some laws are so basic as to be beyond the ability of even a king to change. Hammurabi had the laws inscribed in stone, so they were immutable.

The Code of Hammurabi was one of several sets of laws in the Ancient Near East.^[7]^[8] Most of these codes come from similar cultures and racial groups in a relatively small geographical area, and they have passages which resemble each other. The earlier code of Ur-Nammu, of the Ur-III dynasty (21st century BC), the Hittite code of laws (ca. 1300 BC), and Mosaic Law (traditionally ca. 1400 BC under Moses), all contain statutes that bear at least passing resemblance to those in the Code of Hammurabi and other codices from the same geographic area.

View of the back side of the stele.

References

1. ^ Louvre ( Arts and Architecture). Köln: Könemann. ISBN 3-8331-1943-8.
2. ^ Charles F. Horne, Ph.D. (1915). The Code of Hammurabi : Introduction (English). Yale University. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
3. ^ Edited by Richard Hooker; Translated by L.W. King (1910) (1996). Mesopotamia: The Code of Hammurabi (English). Washington State University. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
4. ^ commonlaw.com; C. H. W. Johns. Code of Hammurabi (English). commonlaw.com. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
5. ^ The Louvre Museum (2006). Near Eastern Antiquities: Mesopotamia (English). The Louvre Museum. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
6. ^ David Graves, Jane Graves (1995). Archaeological History of the Code of Hammurabi (English). Electronic Christian Media. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
7. ^ wwlia.org (2006). Was Hammurabi really the first law maker in history? (English). wwlia.org - Legal information. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.
8. ^ L. W. King (2005). The Code of Hammurabi: Translated by L. W. King (English). Yale University. Retrieved on September 14, 2007.

Sources

Bryant, Tamera (2005). The Life & Times of Hammurabi. Bear: Mitchell Lane Publishers. ISBN 9781584153382.
Mieroop, Marc (2004). King Hammurabi of Babylon: a Biography. Cambridge: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 9781405126601.
Hammurabi, King; C. H. W. Johns (Translator) (2000). The Oldest Code of Laws in the World. City: Lawbook Exchange Ltd. ISBN 9781584770619.
Falkenstein, A. (1956–57). Die neusumerischen Gerichtsurkunden I–III. München.
Elsen-Novák, G. / Novák, M.: Der 'König der Gerechtigkeit'. Zur Ikonologie und Teleologie des 'Codex' Hammurapi. In: Baghdader Mitteilungen 37 (2006), pp. 131-156.
Julius Oppert and Joachim Menant (1877). Documents juridiques de l'Assyrie et de la Chaldee. París.
Thomas, D. Winton, ed. (1958). Documents from Old Testament Times. London and New York.

External links

High resolution images and French description from the Louvre

The eighteenth century BC was the time period from 1800 BC to 1701 BC .

Events

1800 BC - beginning of Iron Age in India^[1]
1800 BC — beginning of the Nordic Bronze Age in the periodization system devised by Oscar Montelius.

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Ancient Mesopotamia

Euphrates Tigris
Cities / Empires
Sumer: Uruk ' Ur ' Eridu
Kish ' Lagash ' Nippur
Akkadian Empire: Akkad
Babylon ' Isin ' Susa
Assyria: Assur Nineveh
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For the computer game, see Hamurabi.

Hammurabi (Akkadian from Amorite ˤAmmurāpi, "the kinsman is a healer," from ˤAmmu, "paternal kinsman," and Rāpi, "healer"; c.
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The Code of Ur-Nammu is the oldest known tablet containing a law code surviving today. It was written in the Sumerian language ca. 2100-2050 BC. Its attribution to king Ur-Nammu of Ur (2112-2095 BC) is uncertain; some historians think it is rather to be ascribed to his son Shulgi.
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Ur, or ur may refer to:

Ur, an ancient city in southern Mesopotamia
Hayy Ur, a neighborhood of eastern Baghdad, Iraq
Úr ᚒ, a letter of the Ogham alphabet
Ur (rune) ᚢ, a letter of the runic alphabets

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Eshnunna is the transliteration of the ancient name of a Sumerian city and city-state in lower Mesopotamia. Although situated in the Diyala Valley north-east of Sumer proper, the city nonetheless belonged securely within the Sumerian cultural millieu.
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Lipit-Ishtar (Lipit-Eshtar), was the fifth ruler of the first dynasty of Isin, and ruled from around 1934 BCE to 1924 BCE. Some documents and royal inscriptions from his time have survived, but he is mostly known because Sumerian language hymns written in his honor, as well as a
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Marduk (Sumerian spelling in Akkadian: AMAR.UTU 𒀫𒌓 "solar calf"; perhaps from MERI.DUG; Biblical: Merodach מְרֹדַךְ
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For the synagogue personality, see .

Shamash was the common Akkadian name of the sun-god and god of justice in Babylonia and Assyria, corresponding to Sumerian Utu.
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Bas-relief (pronounced [ˈbaʁəˌlif], French for "low relief") is a method of sculpting which entails carving or etching away the surface of a flat piece of stone or metal creating a sculpture portrayed as a
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Basalt (IPA: /ˈbæsɒlt, bəˈsɒlt/) is a common gray to black extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava on the Earth's surface.
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Cuneiform
Child systems Old Persian, Ugaritic

Unicode range U+12000 to U+1236E (Sumero-Akkadian Cuneiform)
U+12400 to U+12473 (Numbers)
ISO 15924 Xsux

Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode.
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For the computer game, see Hamurabi.

Hammurabi (Akkadian from Amorite ˤAmmurāpi, "the kinsman is a healer," from ˤAmmu, "paternal kinsman," and Rāpi, "healer"; c.
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Akkadian}}}
Writing system: Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform
Official status
Official language of: initially Akkad (central Mesopotamia); lingua franca of the Middle East and Egypt in the late Bronze and early Iron Ages.
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Susa (in Persian: شوش Shush) is a city in the Khuzestan province of Iran. It had an estimated population of 64,960 in 2005.^[1]

History

Susa (Biblical Hebrew:
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BCE Zayandeh River Civilization Sialk civilization 7500–1000 Jiroft civilization (Aratta) Proto-Elamite civilization Bactria-Margiana Complex Elamite dynasties 2800–550 Kingdom of Mannai Median Empire 728–550 Achaemenid Empire Seleucid Empire Greco-Bactrian
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Anthem
Sorūd-e Mellī-e Īrān ²

Capital
(and largest city) Tehran

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Shutruk-Nahhunte was king of Elam from about 1185 to 1155 BC, and the second king of the Shutrukid Dynasty. Elam amassed an empire that included most of Mesopotamia and western Iran.
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Musée du Louvre

Established 1793
Location Palais Royal, Musée du Louvre,
75001 Paris, France
Visitor figures 8,300,000 (2006)<ref name="visitors" />
Director Henri Loyrette
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Ville de Paris

City flag City coat of arms

Motto: Fluctuat nec mergitur
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The Eiffel Tower in Paris, as seen from the esplanade du Trocadéro.
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LAW may refer to:

Lightweight Anti-tank Weapon, like the M72 LAW (US Army) and the LAW 80 (British Army)
Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights (also known as LAW)
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monarch (see sovereignty) is a type of ruler or head of state. Monarchs almost always inherit their titles and are rulers for life; that is, they have no term limit. Historically monarchs have been more or less absolute rulers.
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The terms ancient Near East or ancient Orient encompass the early civilizations predating classical antiquity in the region roughly corresponding to that described by the modern term Middle East (Egypt, Iraq, Turkey), during the time roughly spanning the Bronze Age
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Hittites were an ancient people from Kaneš who spoke an Indo-European language, and established a kingdom centered at Hattusa (Hittite ^URUḪattuša) in north-central Anatolia from the 18th century BC.
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Halakha (Hebrew: הלכה ; alternate transliterations include Halakhah, Halocho, and Halacha), is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot
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Moses (Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה, Standard
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Assyrian law was very similar to Sumerian and Babylonian law,^[1] however, notably more brutal than its predecessors.^[1] The first copy of the code to come to light, dated to the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I, was discovered in the course of excavations by the
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Code Of Hammurabi

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