Ancient Legal Codes by

The Ten Commandments

ej2446 — 2024-03-09 23:08:27 UTC

The exact date and author of the Ten Commandments are disputed, but they may date back as far as the 16th century BCE. The Ten Commandments are a list of 10 religious and moral principles stemming from early Judaism and are written from the perspective of the Hebrew God, Yahweh.

In 1947-1956 documents known as the Dead Sea Scrolls were found in a cave near Khirbet Qumran. In the scrolls was what is believed to be one of the earliest written copies of the Ten Commandments, dating back to the 1st century BCE and written by the Essenes, a monastic Jewish sect, who lived in the region from around the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE. Some examples from the Ten Commandments are:

1. Thou shalt have no other Gods before me

5. Honor thy father and thy mother

9. Thou shalt not bear false witnesses against thy neighbor

Code of Hammurabi

ej2446 — 2024-03-09 23:31:42 UTC

The Code of Hammurabi is generally accepted as the oldest legal code in the world. It was written by the Babylonian King, Hammurabi, who ruled from 1792 to 1750 BCE in Mesopotamia. There were 282 written laws that enforced family rules, personal injury, physician malpractice, promoted justice, etc. The Code of Hammurabi was first written in Cuneiform on stone stele and clay tablets around 1754 BCE. A few examples from the code are:

196. If a man destroys the eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye.
197. If he breaks another man's bone, they shall break his bone

215. If a physician operates on a man for a sever wound with a bronze lancet and saves the man's life, or if he opens an abscess in the eye of a man with a bronze lancet and saves that man's eye, he shall receive ten shekels of silver.
216. If he is a plebeian, he shall receive five shekels.

The Tang Code

ej2446 — 2024-03-10 00:00:28 UTC

The Tang code is the oldest and most complete legal code in China. The code was written in 624 CE, during the Tang Dynasty. Zhangsun Wuji, who was the brother-in-law of the emperor, Tang Taizong, is credited with writing the Tang Code. It was influenced by earlier dynasties, and it drew from Legalist and Confucianist principles. Even after the end of the Tang Dynasty, the basic tenets of the Tang Code were kept in use for hundreds of years throughout the Song, Ming, and Qing Dynasties. It is organized into general rules to follow as well as punishment for specific offenses.

The Code of the Nesilim

ej2446 — 2024-03-10 00:29:07 UTC

Also known as the Hittite Laws, The Code of the Nesilim was written around 1650 BCE. The exact date the code was written, as well as the author, are unknown. The Code of the Nesilim had around 200 laws, but had undergone several alterations over the 500 years the laws were in use. The laws are generally more fair to women and slaves compared to other legal codes from the era, and it stresses to importance of apologies for petty crimes versus harsh punishments. Some examples from the Code of the Nesilim are:

170. If a free man kill a serpent and speak the name of another, he shall give one pound of silver; if a slave, this one shall die.

164. If anyone come for borrowing, then make a quarrel and throw down either bread or wine jug, then he shall give one sheep, ten loaves, and one jug of beer. Then he cleanses his house by the offering. Not until the year has elapsed may he salute again the other's house.