Question

Read the following passage from the Code of Hammurabi. Based on these laws, what would most likely happen to a Babylonian man who stabs the leg of another man who is his equal? 198. If [a man] put out the eye of a freed man, or break the bone of a freed man, he shall pay one gold mina. 199. If [a man] put out the eye of a man's slave, or break the bone of a man's slave, he shall pay one-half of its value. 200. If a man knock out the teeth of his equal, his teeth shall be knocked out a tooth for a tooth.1

Answer 1

Answer: He would most likely be stabbed in the leg as well.

The Code of Hammurabi is a code of law from ancient Mesopotamia that dates back to 1754 BC. The basis of its laws is a system of "an eye for an eye," adjusting the law as a person's status in the community increased or decreased. If the crime committed is to an equal, the punishment generally is to suffer the same injury, as described in the text.