Hammurabi Code

Mesopotamia was an ancient region located in the eastern Mediterranean bounded in the northeast corresponding to today’s Iraq. Unlike Egypt and Greece, Mesopotamia was a collection of varied cultures whose only real bonds were their gods, and their attitude towards women. The early brewers of beer and wine, as well as the healers in the community, were women. These trades were then later taken by men. The “work one did, however, was never considered simply a `job’ but one’s contribution to the community and, by extension, to the gods’ efforts in keeping the world at peace and in harmony.” (ancient.eu/Mesopotamia) Mesopotamia should be more properly understood as a region that produced multiples empires and civilizations rather than one civilization.

It is known as “The Cradle of Civilization,” because of two main reasons: the rise of the “city” as we all know today, and the invention of writing (even though it is said to be started in Egypt). Since Mesopotamia was fundamentally an agrarian society, men and women worked, so the principal occupations were growing crops and raising livestock. Other occupations included: the scribe, the healer, potter, shoemaker, fisherman, teacher, etc…. They are also known for one of the most powerful kingdoms that we all know as the Kingdom of Akkad. Akkad was founded by the Semitic conqueror Sargon around 2300 BCE. Sargon would then extend his rule to encompass most of Mesopotamia from 2350 BCE TO 2279 BCE. He had to deal with uprisings and revolts because Mesopotamia was so vast a region.
After the fall of sargon, King Hammurabi took control.

He ruled from 1792 BCE TO 1759 BCE. Hammurabi was known for ruling his kingdom through a process known as Law and Order. Hammurabi’s rule is based on his date formulas; he was also responsible for most of Mesopotamia’s early government and expansion along the other empires of the Mediterranean coast. Hammurabi was best known for his laws and codes. The code of Hammurabi was one of the earliest and most efficient written legal code. “The oldest known evidence of a law code are tablets from the ancient city Ebla (Tell Mardikh in modern-day Syria). They date to about 2400 B.C.E. — approximately 600 years before Hammurabi put together his famous code. “(ushistory.org) The code of laws which consisted of 282 rules which were written in if-then format, established standards for the interactions and punishments to meet requirements of justice. Hammurabi understood that, to achieve this goal, he needed one universal set of laws for all of the diverse places he had conquered. He sent legal experts throughout his kingdom to gather existing laws so he could change and manipulate them in to what is now known as “the laws of Hammurabi.” The Code of Hammurabi provides some of the earliest examples of the doctrine of “Lex talionis,” or the laws of retribution, better known as “an eye for an eye.” The phrase “an eye for an eye” represents what many people view as a harsh sense of justice based on revenge. But, the entire code is much more complex than that one phrase. The code distinguishes among punishments for wealthy or non-wealthy persons, or slaves. The paraphrase of the code was inscribed on an upright stone pillar. The code was found by French archaeologists in 1901 while searching the ancient city of Susa, which is modern day Iran. Hammurabi’s code may not seem different from more recent laws but there are a few major differences between ancient times and now. From the code, it is evident that the Babylonians did not

believe all people were equal. It treated slaves, nobles and the wealthy differently. Women had a number of rights including the ability to buy and sell property. The Babylonians understood the need for honesty by all participants in a trial and for court officers to be free of corruption. “Hammurabi’s Code serves as a window into the prevailing values of ancient Babylon.” (ushistory.org)
Hammurabi believed that traditional rituals would restore and govern the social order and better the social problems that were happening at that point in time. Even though other systems were nonhuman I find that most of the ancient rulers would find Hammurabi’s code of laws to be very inhumane and awful. “if any one accuses another of murder but cannot prove it, then the accuser shall be put to death” (Hammurabi’s code of laws) the laws he set were a reflection of the problems that were happening during his reign. His laws were working to a certain extent because of his long ruling; however, some ancient rules he bestowed might question his means for “law and order”
In conclusion the Ancient Mesopotamian system was based on the codes and laws that the ancient ruler Hammurabi installed. He started the movement of laws and legal systems that we have today. Although we have other ancient rulers who had a set of laws he is most remembered. Laws and life of Mesopotamia will always be one of the most examined topics because of the vast information that we can gain from it.