The Code of Hammurabi
adapted from Warren E. Burger National Repository for
Educational Materials on Citizenship and the Constitution
As we know from the study of prehistoric times, the development of the written records is essential for
the detailed study of the “history” of past societies and civilizations. In the case of Sumerian civilizations,
archaeologists and historians are fortunate to have a relative wealth of information to draw upon. This is a result
of the system of writing which evolved in Sumeria known as cuneiform. The clay tablets upon which this
writing was preserved has proved to be nearly indestructible. A wide variety of records have survived in this
form with some being far more useful than others in reconstructing the lives of ancient Sumerians. One of the
most famous of the documents to survive is the Code of Hammurabi.
Unlike many other early civilizations of the Middle East, such as the Egyptians who lacked a code of
secular (non-religious) laws, Babylonia and Mesopotamia generally had many definite laws governing people’s
lives, public and private. During the seventeenth century BCE, King Hammurabi of Babylon ordered that these
laws be compiled and comprehensively written down. The resulting collection or “code” of laws became the
first such written set of laws known to man. The fact that these laws were written down carries a special
significance in itself but the individual laws are also valuable historical evidence.
King Hammurabi explained in his “prologue” that he was the representative of the gods on earth
commissioned “to promote the welfare of the people, cause justice to prevail in the land, destroy the wicked and
the evil, that the strong might not oppress the weak.” Clearly a written code of all existing laws was designed to
assist Hammurabi in his task. To historians, each law provides some insight into the values, morals, and
lifestyles of the people that populated Mesopotamia in ancient times. Many of the laws collected by
Hammurabi dated back to much earlier times so that these “laws” are evidence about the many societies that
developed and perished in that harsh and unforgiving area over centuries.
PART I: Exploring the Code
In your role as historian, analyze the selection of laws taken from the Code of Hammurabi for information to enable
you to answer the following questions. Reference specific code numbers in your answers.
1. In what ways was honesty important to the ancient Babylonians?
2. What types of crops and animals did the Babylonians raise? Were these of equal importance or were some items
more valuable?
3. In what ways was money used in Ancient Babylon?
4. Describe the legal relationship between husband and wife. What does this reveal about the status of women?
5. How did social classes and the division of wealth influence Babylon’s legal system?
6. Historians consider Hammurabi’s code to be especially important because his was the first known attempt to
record laws in organized written form. What benefit did the Code provide that previously was lacking?
7. Give 1 law that resembles a current legal practice.
8. Give 1 law that details an especially excessive punishment for the crime.
9. Give 1 law that you feel is the most surprising or odd.
Part II: Finish the Law… As Hammurabi Would
The laws Hammurabi wrote for his empire were based on his people’s belief in lex talionis, a “life for a life.” While
the US legal system is in part influenced by ancient laws, such as Hammurabi’s Code, it is much different. Imagine living
in a current society that applied Hammurabi’s Code to everyday problems.
Each of the statements below describes a situation in which one person injures another. Finish the statement as
Hammurabi would, by creating a law describing what should happen to the person who caused the injury. Your
laws should be fair as the wrongdoer should be punished. The injured person should feel that justice has been done, that
he or she has received an “eye for an eye.”
1. If one boy tears another boy’s shirt in a fight, then…
2. If a girl kicks a soccer ball through a neighbor’s window and the flying glass cuts the neighbor’s arm, then…
3. If a boy tells a lie about his sister and, because of that lie, their parents punish the girl by taking away a month’s
allowance, then…
4. If a babysitter leaves a young child alone in the living room for a long time and the child breaks an expensive TV,
then…
5. If a girl has no car and borrows one from a friend, and because she is careless, runs into a tree, then…
6. If a boy cheats on a test and gets an “A,” then…
7. If a young boy is killed in a car accident because the driver failed to see him chase a ball into the street, then…
Part III: Revising Hammurabi’s Code for Modern Times
Hammurabi’s Code is historically important, as it is the first known written set of laws adopted and followed by a
society. While ancient Babylonians and current Americans share many of the same types of problems, the way their
respective legal systems addresses these problems differs greatly. For each of the following laws found in Code of
Hammurabi, write a response describing how the US legal system would address the situation.
1. If a man is married and his wife becomes ill, he may marry a second wife. However, he may not divorce his first
wife, who should live in his home and be supported by him until he dies.
2. If a man adopted an infant as a son and raised him and later has children of his own and wants to disown his
adopted son, he must first give his adopted son one-third of the possessions (wealth) of his biological son.
3. If a man destroyed the eye of a free man, his own eye should be destroyed.
4. If a doctor operates on a man for a severe wound or a tremor and causes the man to die, his hands shall be cut off.
5. If a man opens his irrigation ditch and through negligence, it floods his neighbor’s field, he shall pay his neighbor
in corn according to how much he would have raised.
6. If a man breaks into a house, he should be killed.
7. If a man steals an ox, sheep, donkey, pig, or goat, he must pay 10 times the worth. If the thief has nothing to pay,
he shall be killed.