HUM1001
Art History: Prehistory to the Middle Ages
W2 Project Exploring the Art and Architecture of the Ancient Near East (Mesopotamia) and the Art from the Ancient Aegean.
Part 1- The Art of the Ancient Near East (Mesopotamia)
Example 1
Title: The Law Code of Hammurabi
Date: 1792–1750 BC
Place of origin: Sippar, city of the sun god Shamash
Detailed Description: Laws written in cuneiform, and Akkadian language on basalt stele. It is divided into three parts and contains 300 laws and legal decisions. At the top of the basalt stele is Hammurabi presenting himself to the god of justice, Shamash.
Historical Value: These set of laws set a tradition for laws over time and were created before biblical laws. Many of them made sense and are laws that we follow today morally. They speak of marriage, incest, and adultery. They also were the first to set order within its kingdom.
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This image proves that they were political in nature because the image of the king presenting himself to the sun god, god of justice, Shamash. This image represents that the king lives by the laws, and serves the sun god, god of justice. Underneath the king and the son god, the laws go into very detailed rules. The rules imply criminal and civil laws. These laws focused on “family law, slavery, and professional, commercial, agricultural and administrative law. Economic measures set prices and salaries” (Claire). It created fear into people, letting them know what wrong and what justice will be brought unto
The Code of Hammurabi from the ancient Babylonian civilization, and the Twelve Tables from Ancient Rome society were both sets of laws from by which their societies had to abide. The Ancient Babylonian society abided by the Code of Hammurabi while the Ancient Romans abided by The Twelve Tables. Although they both served as promising laws to live by, they also served as tools that defined and distinguished each citizen’s position in the social order. Depending on where they stood in the social order, any criminal punishment would be tailored to that specific class. In Mesopotamian history, the most consummate code of law was the Code of Hammurabi, engendered by the King Hammurabi. The Twelve Tables was created by the Roman elites in order to create justice and fairness between the plebian and patricians. Both these sets of laws, although belonging to different societies, sought to create the illusion of fairness and equality outwardly towards the people, and inwardly, reward the rich and elite of their respective social class with power. Although these sets of laws belonged to different societies, they both casted an illusion of fairness and equality. However, in actuality these regulations only benefited the rich and elite.
Picture the laws we have now. Now imagine how they would be 3,815 years ago. How different would they really be? How would the differences affect society? Hammurabi was the king of Babylon in 1800 B.C.E. who wrote one of the world’s oldest orders of laws. This particular set of laws is used to research and understand ancient Mesopotamia's overall history, and thoughts about justice this brought us to learn about "Hammurabi's Code", the previously mentioned oldest order of written down laws though this was one of the oldest order of written down laws. Though this is one of the oldest sets of laws, there is a question that's been asked for thousands of years: "were these laws just?" It is true that the set of laws is described as "harsh", and "hasty", but they were written like this because they were the first try at justice. People didn't know any better. This is why a great number of Hammurabi's laws concerning bestowment of power, family, and theft were just and fair to all those it applied to.
Hammurabi was the sixth king of Babylon around 1792-1750 BCE, and was the ruler of an estimated population of 1,000,000 individuals. He is known for being the first to make complete written laws. Hammurabi considered himself a righteous king and called his laws "precious." He made 282 laws, and aimed to create a society of fairness and justice, although his laws were unjust and ended in violence,. Hammurabi's laws were unjust because they were violent and inhumane.
In conclusion, Hammurabi’s Law Code was fundamental in elevating females place in society. Previously unprotected by any official laws, women were to some degree, treated as slaves. However, the implementation of Hammurabi’s Code of Laws, granted woman very important protections—if only a few—that greatly benefited the stability of their societal position. To summarize, the law code granted women few, but very monumental rights that consequently elevated their place in society as well as paving the way for future generations to attain further
The secular laws of Babylon were laid down by Hammurabi in “The Code of Hammurabi”, and in the book of Exodus. These laws provided stability and order in those respective societies. As society depended upon them, it is natural to assume that the laws relied upon society as well and reflect the values held by each society, not only in the laws themselves, but also in how they are written, whom they pertain to and how they are executed. While at first glance the law codes appear similar, there are a number of differences that provide key insight to what was held dear in each society. How do differences in these two law codes attest to differences in the two societies which pronounced them, and likewise, what can be learned from their
Around 4,000 years ago Hammurabi’s code was created by Hammurabi the king of Babylonia with the goal of bringing justice to his kingdom. He even claimed that Shamash the god of justice commanded him to make these laws. Then his laws were carved into large stone’s called steles, written in the ancient cuneiform written, and then put up throughout all major communities of Babylonia. However, these ancient laws were not fair for everyone in his kingdom. Hammurabi’s Code was unjust because the laws pertaining to family life, property law, and personal injury were unfair.
The first great ruler of Babylon, Hammurabi, arranged a law codes that set guidelines for the society of his region. The Stele of Hammurabi is historically significant to the humanities because the king’s great achievement created both a piece of art and a code of law. The sculpture’s detailed carvings and intellectualism blend with its visual design qualities. The 7.4 feet tall structure’s relief scene of Hammurabi starts just above eye-level, therefore when reading the text it feels as if the former king is hovering over you. It is sculpted in the round and has writing on the front and the back which allows all ends of the sculpture to be viewed. The visual elements of the Stele of Hammurabi fully deliver the law code in a way that shows
The Law Code of Hammurabi is a native Babylonian text that served as the basic law code of society. The way of life was of the former Babylonians culture is totally different than what we are used to today. The text gives readers a vision of how ancient societies lived in these times. This law code gave society a diverse arrangement for citizens to follow. The social structure isn’t about wealth, they are judged by different standards (such as trial by ordeal). The husband is the dominant role of the house. The family structure is a patriarchal household and the power of the father is absolute. The Law Code of Hammurabi gives readers a clear thought of how unfair the earlier civilization of Babylonians existed through class structures, gender relations, and family structures.
The Code of Hammurabi is the most fascinating and useful source on Ancient Babylonian culture and justice. The intricately carved cuneiform record of a legal code is evocative of Hammurabi and his authoritarian style of leadership, and indicative of how important his legacy was to him. It also reveals that the kingdom under his rule had an organised society, with a rigid class-structure. This code was no mere theoretical exercise, but a series of practical laws that extended to shaping the society’s way of life.
The code of Hammurabi is the most remarkable and complete code of ancient law that we have. The code can be found on a stele, a stone slab usually to commemorate military victories in the ancient world. His code, a collection of 282 laws and standards, stipulated rules for commercial interactions and set fines and punishments to meet the requirements of justice. Most punishments resulting of death or loss of limb if a law was broken. The edicts ranged from family law to professional contracts and administrative law, often outlining different standards of justice for the three classes of Babylonian society. The Hammurabi Code was issued on the three classes of Babylonian Society, property owners, freemen and slaves. It was important as it organized the most civilized empire at that times , and Hammurabi made many copies of it and distributed them in the most important cities of the empire , so it represented a great progress to the human
Reigning from 1792-1750 BCE, Hammurabi was the ruler of the great Babylonian Empire and is most recognized for his written code uncovered in 1902 unarguably the apex of contributions to modern society from the ancient world. Although wrongly referred to as the first collection of laws in history its significance cannot be forgotten, still affecting people worldwide today. The code is prominent in many biblical texts found today, one example being Mosaic Law, as well as records from other civilizations after the time of Babylonia. It comprised of laws pertaining to inheritance, sexual relations, punishments in regards to violent acts and slavery, making it directly influential to what still exists today in the hands of the Church,
The “Code of Hammurabi” is considered to be one of the most valuable finds of human existence. In fact its very existence created the basis for the justice system we have come to rely on today. The creation of “the Code” was a tremendous achievement for not only Babylonian society but for the entire Mesopotamian region as King Hammurabi was ruler over all of that area. Its conception can be considered to be the first culmination of the laws of different regions into a single, logical text. Hammurabi wanted to be an efficient ruler and realized that this could be achieved through the use of a common set of laws which applied to all territories and all citizens who fell under his rule. This paper will discuss the Hammurabi Code and the
As students of history we always are searching for resources to give us an idea of what human life was like in the past. Looking back at one specific document, the Law Code of Hammurabi gives us an interesting perspective on what life was like during that period in history. The fact that it was a law code, rather than a narrative, shows us clean cut ideas rather than speculation or bias from one side or another. From the rules and laws stipulated in Babylon by Hammurabi, we are able to draw conclusions about what various aspects of life were like. One of the most obvious aspects of Babylonian society is the class structure.
The Hammurabi Code of Laws is a set of rules enacted by the Babylonian King whose name was Hammurabi. The Babylonian King created a total of two-hundred eighty-two punishments that the citizens will receive if they do not abide by the laws that were given to them. The king ruled from 1792 BC to 1750 BC. The Hammurabi Code of Laws is very violent in terms of punishments. For example, one of the laws are “If anyone breaks into a house to steal, he will be put to death before that point of entry and be buried there (walled into the house)”. This is a clear example of how violent and inhumane the punishments of the Babylonians were, to us at least. This essay will be explaining a set of laws from the Hammurabi’s Code of Laws.
The Middle Assyrian Laws are a collection of laws that were put together for the people of Mesopotamia, although the author is unknown. These codes of law were originally written in Akkadian, one of the earliest Semitic languages. The excerpts are from the Code the Assyrians, which was made in 1075 BCE. According to the document, They were found during the twentieth century in ancient Assur (currently Northern Iraq) at the site of Qal’ at Shergart. These laws are significant because they implemented structure into their society by setting standards for what women and men can and cannot do. They are important to us today because they give us valuable ideas as to how ancient society was in Mesopotamia, particularly gender roles in 1075 BCE.