
Writing, Law, and Kingship in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia
- English
- PDF
- Available on iOS & Android
Writing, Law, and Kingship in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia
About this book
Ancient Mesopotamia, the fertile crescent between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in what is now western Iraq and eastern Syria, is considered to be the cradle of civilizationāhome of the Babylonian and Assyrian empires, as well as the great Code of Hammurabi. The Code was only part of a rich juridical culture from 2200ā1600 BCE that saw the invention of writing and the development of its relationship to law, among other remarkable firsts.
Though ancient history offers inexhaustible riches, Dominique Charpin focuses here on the legal systems of Old Babylonian Mesopotamia and offers considerable insight into how writing and the law evolved together to forge the principles of authority, precedent, and documentation that dominate us to this day. As legal codes throughout the region evolved through advances in cuneiform writing, kings and governments were able to stabilize their control over distant realms and impose a common languageāwhich gave rise to complex social systems overseen by magistrates, judges, and scribes that eventually became the vast empires of history books. Sure to attract any reader with an interest in the ancient Near East, as well as rhetoric, legal history, and classical studies, this book is an innovative account of the intertwined histories of law and language.
Frequently asked questions
- Essential is ideal for learners and professionals who enjoy exploring a wide range of subjects. Access the Essential Library with 800,000+ trusted titles and best-sellers across business, personal growth, and the humanities. Includes unlimited reading time and Standard Read Aloud voice.
- Complete: Perfect for advanced learners and researchers needing full, unrestricted access. Unlock 1.4M+ books across hundreds of subjects, including academic and specialized titles. The Complete Plan also includes advanced features like Premium Read Aloud and Research Assistant.
Please note we cannot support devices running on iOS 13 and Android 7 or earlier. Learn more about using the app.
Information
Table of contents
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- List of Abbreviations
- Introduction. The Historianās Task and Sources
- One / Reading and Writing in Mesopotamia: The Business of Specialists?
- Two / Outline for a Diplomatics of Mesopotamian Documents
- Three / Old Babylonian Law: Gesture, Speech, and Writing
- Four / The Transfer of Property Deeds and the Constitution of Family Archives
- Five / The Status of the Code of Hammurabi
- Six / The āRestorationā Edicts of the Babylonian Kings and Their Application
- Seven / Hammurabi and International Law
- Eight / Controlling Cross- Border Traffi c
- Conclusion. A Civilization with Two Faces
- Notes
- Index