Historical Figures Codexery

Hammurabi

The Amorite king who united Mesopotamia and issued one of history's earliest law codes.

Hammurabi was the sixth Amorite king of Babylon, reigning from around 1792 BC.[1][2] He is best known for his code of 282 laws, which was inscribed on a stele and placed in a public location.[3][4]

Quick Facts

Reign
c. 1792 – c. 1750 BC
Predecessor
Sin-Muballit
Successor
Samsu-iluna
Born
c. 1810 BC
Birthplace
City of Babylon, Babylon
Died
c. 1750 BC (aged c. 60)
Issue
  • Sumu-ditana
  • Mutu-Numaha
  • Samsu-iluna
  • 1 daughter

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

Hammurabi inherited a minor city-state from his father Sin-Muballit, who had already conquered Borsippa, Kish, and Sippar.[2][5] After Elam invaded and destroyed Eshnunna, Hammurabi allied with Larsa's king Rim-Sîn I to crush the Elamites.[6][2] Angered that Larsa did not aid him in battle, Hammurabi then invaded and annexed Larsa around 1763 BC.[2] He later conquered the remaining northern states, including his former ally Mari.[7]

He died around 1750 BC and was succeeded by his son Samsu-iluna.[8][9] His code of laws focused on physically punishing the perpetrator rather than compensating the victim, and included the principle of "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth".[3][10] For roughly a century after Babylon's founding, it was less prominent than established powers such as Elam, Assyria, Isin, Eshnunna, and Larsa.[5]

What the cited sources add

The Architect of the Capitol records that a marble relief portrait of Hammurabi, created by Thomas Hudson Jones in 1950, is located in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol.[11] The Bible Gateway passage from Genesis 14 mentions Amraphel as king of Shinar, whom many early twentieth-century scholars believed was Hammurabi.[12][13] The Architect of the Capitol records that Hammurabi is among 23 historical figures whose marble relief portraits, located above the gallery doors in the U.S. House Chamber, honor individuals who helped form the foundations of American jurisprudence.[11]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Khwshnaw 2023; Hone, "The Sacred Books and Early Literature of the East", 1917 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1; Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1; Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: H. Otto Sommer, Records of the Past, Volume II, Part III., 1908; Driver Miles 1952, p. 9; Breasted 2003, p. 129; Bertman 2003, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&q=adultery+in+ancient+Sumer&pg=PA71 71]; Bertman 2003, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&q=adultery+in+ancient+Sumer&pg=PA71 71]; Bertman 2003, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&q=adultery+in+ancient+Sumer&pg=PA71 71]; Victimology: Theories and Applications, Ann Wolbert Burgess, Albert R. Roberts, Cheryl Regehr, Jones & Bartlett Learn en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Breasted 2003, p. 129 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Adolf, "Peace: A World History", John Wiley & Sons, 8 May 2013, p. 3; Arnold 2005, p. 43; Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1; Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1; Van De Mieroop 2005, p. 1; Arnold 2005, p. 43 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  8. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Breasted 2003, p. 129; Breasted 2003, p. 129; Arnold 2005, p. 43 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  9. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Van De Mieroop, King Hammurabi of Babylon, 2005: 112.; Van De Mieroop, King Hammurabi of Babylon, 2005: 73; Rients de Boer, "The Members of the Royal House of Old Babylonian Babylon," Isin, pp. 27–43: 31, 37–38, 2021/2 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  10. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Prince 1904, p. 606–607; Bertman 2003, p. [https://books.google.com/books?id=1C4NKp4zgIQC&q=adultery+in+ancient+Sumer&pg=PA71 71] (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  11. "Hammurabi", Architect of the Capitol. facts only, no text reused. aoc.gov
  12. Wikipedia, "Hammurabi" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ziolkowski 2012; Ziolkowski 2012; "Amraphel", The Jewish Encyclopedia; "Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 14 - New International Version"; North, "The Oxford Companion to the Bible", Oxford University Press, 1993, p. 5; Granerød, "Abraham and Melchizedek: Scribal Activity of Second Temple Times in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110", Walter de Gruyter, 26 March 2010, p. 120; Granerød, "Abraham and Melchizedek: Scribal Activity of Second Temple Times in Genesis 14 and Psalm 110", Walter de Gruyter, 26 March 2010, p. 120 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  13. "Bible Gateway passage: Genesis 14 - New International Version". facts only, no text reused. biblegateway.com

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Hammurabi (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Test yourself on TriviaCafe: What king of Mesopotamia, who lived from 1792-1750 BC, put the laws of his country into a formal code? · More history trivia

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