What is the Code of Hammurabi?

What is the Code of Hammurabi?

The Code of Hammurabi is the longest surviving text from the Old Babylonian period. The code has been seen as an early example of a fundamental law, regulating a government — i.e., a primitive constitution.

What are the laws in Hammurabi’s law?

In the prologue, Hammurabi claims to have been granted his rule by the gods “to prevent the strong from oppressing the weak”. The laws are casuistic, expressed as “if then” conditional sentences. Their scope is broad, including, for example, criminal law, family law, property law, and commercial law .

How did Hammurabi rule Babylon?

Hammurabi (or Hammurapi), the sixth king of the Amorite First Dynasty of Babylon, ruled from 1792 to 1750 BC ( middle chronology ). He secured Babylonian dominance over the Mesopotamian plain through military prowess, diplomacy, and treachery.

What is on the top of the Hammurabi stele?

The top of the stele features an image in relief of Hammurabi with Shamash, the Babylonian sun god and god of justice. Below the relief are about 4,130 lines of cuneiform text: one fifth contains a prologue and epilogue in poetic style, while the remaining four fifths contain what are generally called the laws.

Who dictated the laws of Hammurabi?

In ancient Eastern culture, it was the gods who dictated the laws to men for handling a deeper sense of spirituality and balance, so the laws have a divinity character. In any case, it is the God Samash, the mighty Sun God and God of justice, who grants the laws to King Hammurabi of Babylon (1750-1790 B.C.).

What is the difference between civil and criminal law in Hammurabi?

In the Code of Hammurabi there is no distinction between civil and criminal law, i.e., laws are applied that regulate different situations of daily life and laws that punish crimes committed. It employs the regulation of trade, unpaid work, different types of loans, rents, inheritances for each family, divorces,…

What does the Code of Ur-Nammu and Lipit-Ishtar have in common?

Like the Code of Hammurabi, they feature prologues and epilogues: the Code of Ur-Nammu has a prologue, the Code of Lipit-Ishtar a prologue and an epilogue, and the Laws of Eshnunna an epilogue. Also, like the Code of Hammurabi, they uphold the “one crime, one punishment” principle.