Download History of Mesopotamia

Fertile Crescent Law
Project
Directions: Please complete each task listed below that pertains to the ancient
civilizations of Mesopotamia. Copied answers will receive zero credit. Make sure that
you use the related links for each question and those links only. Make sure to answer all
parts of the question. This project is worth 50 points and is due on Wednesday,
September 26th, 2007 at the beginning of class.
If you have any problems with the project please email Mr. Lindstrom at
[email protected]
Task Number 1 (8 points)
Read: http://www.learner.org/interactives/collapse/mesopotamia.html then answer the
following.
1. According to the article, what is a possible answer as to why some Mesopotamian
cities, and even Mesopotamia as whole, faded away and lost their influence over
time? 4 pts.
2. What evidence exists today that supports this claim? 4 pts.
Task Number 2 (12 points)
Visit this website:
http://www.duhaime.org/LegalResources/LawMuseum/tabid/345/articleType/ArticleVie
w/articleId/44/The-Timetable-of-World-Legal-History.aspx#2350bc
Then answer the following.
1. What punishments did the very first legal codes hand out? In your eyes, were
these codes brutal or necessary? 4 pts.
2. According to Urukagina's Code, who appointed the kings? Why is this
important for the early civilizations of Mesopotamia? 4 pts.
3. Read the information sets on Hammurabi’s Code and the Ten
Commandments. What does the article claim the connection is? 4 pts.
Task Number 3 (6 points)
Read the article “Was Hammurabi really the first law maker in history?” which is
attached below, then answer the following.
1. Why does the author claim that Hammurabi’s Code was “remarkable?” 2 points
2. How much credit do you give Hammurabi in inventing his legal code? Why? Who
gave Hammurabi the right to install these laws? 4 points
Task Number 4 (6 points)
Take a look at the following scenarios found at
http://www.phillipmartin.info/hammurabi/hammurabi_situation_index.htm then answer
the following.
1. According to the scenarios that you read, do you believe the punishments were fit for
the crimes? Why or why not? 3 pts.
2. Though the punishments may differ today, what principles in the scenarios do we still
follow today? Do you agree with any of Hammurabi’s laws? Which ones? 3pts.
Task Number 5 (10 pts.)
Use the following link to help answer the questions.
http://www.phillipmartin.info/hammurabi/hammurabi_codeindex.htm
1. After reviewing rule #5, would you be in favor of this law existing today? Why or
why not? 2 pts
2. After reviewing laws #53-55, what principles do these laws set? Do we believe in
these principles today? Why or why not? 2pts
3. After reviewing law #126, how do we know if the person who is making the claim is
telling the truth? Does this contradict our belief in the separation of church and state?
2 pts.
4. Beginning with law #151, why is it so important that Hammurabi included laws about
marriage and the rights of sons in his set of laws? 2 pts.
5. What is the main principle laid out in rules # 195-200 that we value today? Was the
punishment the same if the crime was done to a slave? 2 pts.
Task Number 6 ( 8 points)
Review Constitution from this link
http://odur.let.rug.nl/~usa/D/1776-1800/constitution/const.htm
Review the amendments from this link
http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/constitution.table.html
1. What are the purposes of our Constitution? Does every society need a legal code or
constitution? 4 pts.
2. What is the purpose of the amendments to our Constitution? Would Hammurabi agree
with any of these rights? Why or why not? 4pts
Was Hammurabi really the first lawmaker in history?
Babylon the world’s first metropolis appears often in history as the
place where many momentous events took place; a city where history
took decisive turns and shaped the path of civilization. In our context,
it also the land of Hammurabi, the king who ruled over this metropolis
in 18th century B.C. Hammurabi was known for his code of laws which
gave the city much of its greatness.
He was known by his subjects as the most righteous and fair among
rulers. He is also known as the first ruler to bring all his subjects
together under one common code of laws. The code of laws was
binding on man and his servant, on man and his wife, on the ruler and
the ruled. He took his royal charge as given to him by a divine order.
Relics of the era (1795 – 1750 B.C.) during Hammurabi's reign are
preserved in a museum and evoke the glory of those days. These
include the famed Hammurabi’s Code of Laws, which offers great
insight about not only Babylon but also about the ruler who made
these laws. Truly he was a king of great vision and a believer in justice
for all.
Hammurabi’s remarkable Code of Laws is by far the earliest-known
example of a ruler proclaiming publicly to his people an entire body of
laws, arranged in orderly groups, so that all men might read and know
what was required of them. The code was engraved on an 8 foot high
black stone monument and placed where everyone could read it. The
Code begins and ends with addresses to the gods they believed in,
pointing to a sense of divine justice. Today’s prayers accompanying
any legal oath sound more like curses upon whoever shall neglect or
destroy the law.
The code regulated the organization of society, by ensuring peace and
justice with laws that were impartial and binding, upon all. Some
examples: The witness who falsely testified earned the death penalty;
if a man built a house and it later collapsed killing the owner and its
occupants, the builder got the death penalty; if the owner’s son was
killed in the collapse, the builder’s son was slain; if a judge blundered
in his duties, he was expelled from judgeship forever.
These were perhaps the original source of the Hebrew law “an eye for
an eye”. The stone provides an interesting insight about the people’s
way of life. Swimming, it appears, was unheard of then. Because the
only exception to all the deathly punitive measures is the “Casting into
the river Euphrates”. Hammurabi’s laws made no exception and left
little room for excuses or explanations, once the accused was proved
guilty. But if an accused person’s guilt could not be proved beyond
doubt, he was allowed to cast himself into the river Euphrates. If he
survived the ordeal and the current bore him to the shore alive, he
would be declared innocent and spared.
Hammurabi’s Code of Laws implied that the justice dispensed by the
king was the justice of the ruling gods.
Some historians believe that Hammurabi’s Code of Laws is not the
oldest recorded of such codes. The fact that Hamurabi formed these
laws, suggests that there might have been a preceding set of laws to
inspire him. The preceding sets of laws have disappeared and some
people claim to have found traces of them. It may be interesting to
note that this stone monument of Hammurabi’s Code was found, in the
year 1901, not in Babylon, but in a Persian city. Obviously, a later
Persian King must have triumphantly carried it off after capturing
Babylon.
Additional links for future reference of Ancient Mesopotamian Societies
History of Mesopotamia
http://www.crystalinks.com/mesopotamia.html
Rulers of Mesopotamia
http://www.killeenroos.com/1/anccompl.htm
Sumerians
http://www.crystalinks.com/sumer.html
Babylonians
http://www.crystalinks.com/babylonian.html
Hitties
http://www.crystalinks.com/hittites.html
Persians
http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MESO/PERSIANS.HTM