Hammurabi Code

Hammurabi’s Code was a set of written laws created by the sixth king of Babylon, King Hammurabi. King Hammurabi became king after the abdication of his father, Sin-Muballit and ruled from 1792-50 B.C.E. When he was in power, he reigned over the largest empire of all Babylonian Kings, due to many victorious wars over neighboring Mesopotamian states, to the degree that he owned all of Mesopotamia at the time of his death. He is well known for his code, as it is considered one of the first written code of laws in written history. The Code of Hammurabi was written on man sized slates and consisted of 282 laws. Many of the laws concern commerce, land, and marriage. The code of Hammurabi is considered monumental, as not only were the laws set and applied to everyone but it also includes one of the

As a man destroying the eye of a lower rank man or a slave was punished only by a fine and a man slapping a man of a higher class was punished by “ sixty blows with an ox-whip in public” according to the 202nd law. Also, women, although granted rights to land and divorce were punished more severely also. In most laws, their sexualities were sacrificed to ensure the legitimacy of their children. For example, men were allowed to have extramarital relationships with servants and slaves but philandering women were bound and thrown into the Euphrates along with her lover (unless her husband pardons her). The second law of Hammurabi states that an accused man could prove his innocence by jumping into the Euphrates. If he survived he was proven innocent by the gods and the accuser would be put to death. If the man died in the sacred river the accuser would come to own the dead man’s land. In other words, being a rich man who was also a swell swimmer during Hammurabi’s rule was quite