Faṣlnāmah-i Pizhūhish-i Huqūq-i Kiyfarī (Sep 2014)

Comparison Study of Criminal Provisions of Hebrew and Hammurabi

  • Husein heidari,
  • Jenat Khaksar arani

Journal volume & issue
Vol. 3, no. 8
pp. 115 – 143

Abstract

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The invention of writing system may be considered as a divider between savagery and civility. Another line between these two periods appears to be invention of procedural law, special in public law. Concerning these two issues, Mesopotamia is, undoubtedly, the most significant origin of civilization. After detection of Hammurabi’s code as inscribed on stone tablets, it has been proved that code of Hammurabi is the most detailed and comprehensive collection found in Ancient Mesopotamia. Moses has been estimated to live between 1500 and 1200 B.C. However, the most ancient written documents attributed to him, Pentateuch; date back to 900 B.C. in Palestine. The current article is an attempt to reveal similarities between code of Hammurabi and Jewish laws in such topics as punishment for witchcraft, adultery, retaliation mythologies such as storm in time of Noah and etc. meanwhile, slight differences between code of Hammurabi and Jewish laws in such topics as vicarious punishment, rights of women and etc. altogether, dramatic correlation between two collection of codes might indicate that code of Hammurabi is a prototype of Jewish laws.

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