Why is ‘The Code of Hammurabi’ a pathbreaking work?

          Hammurabi, the sixth king of the first dynasty of Babylonia, instituted one of the earliest known collections of laws.

          There were different sets of law in Ancient Babylon concerning religion, agriculture, administration and business. Hammurabi codified all these laws in simple form which became famous as the Code of Hammurabi.

          The Code of Hammurabi had four parts. They include laws about money, property, the family, and the rights of slaves. According to the law, a criminal had to be punished in a way that suited the crime. The famous phrase “an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth” originates from Hammurabi’s code. For instance, a murderer was awarded the death penalty. If a thief was caught stealing he had to return triple price of the same.

          Hammurabi’s laws were carved into a stele of black basalt rock. The code begins and ends with addresses to the gods. He stated specifically that the strong should not oppress the weak, and that widows or orphans should get justice.

          The Code of Hammurabi is important even today, for it reveals the way human rights were beginning to emerge in Babylonia, as Hammurabi sought to protect all classes of Babylonian society.