The Sometimes Bewildering Code of Laws

The sixth monarch of the dynasty, Hammurabi, is best renowned for codifying a set of rules, as was already suggested. His code of laws predates the Ten Commandments of Moses by centuries because he ruled from 1792 to 1750 BC. Oddly, clay tablets with his code still on them date from a very long time ago. You've surely heard that it stipulates that a successful surgeon must receive 10 shekels in compensation; nevertheless, if the patient died, the surgeon forfeited a hand. Actually, that's not the law that defies contemporary thought the most.

For instance, one of Hammurabi's laws practically mandated that, once someone was executed for burglary, their body be buried on the property of the house they had broken into. This seems like at least a little bit of a nuisance for a family that has just been through such a traumatic experience. In the event that no burglar was apprehended, the neighborhood effectively took on the role of the household's insurance provider by requiring the homeowner to formally register their losses before receiving collective compensation from the neighborhood. Another legislation stipulated that the wife of a soldier taken prisoner during the war who had children with another man after their home ran out of food had to return to her husband if he returned, but the paramour was given custody of the kids.

While it is reasonable that being a construction worker in a structure that fell and killed a homeowner was punishable by death, it is maybe less understandable that if the homeowner's child perished in the collapse, the construction owner's child would also be sentenced to death. Despite the fact that it would seem much more fitting to bury a burglar there, this was not the case in either case. Being a female tavern keeper where a gang of thieves congregated was likewise punishable by death, however there were no requirements that the keeper be a knowing accomplice.