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Primary sourceSculpturec. 1792 BCE

Stele with the Code of Hammurabi

Hammurabi · c. 1792 BCE

The basalt stele on which Hammurabi's laws were carved, topped with a relief of the king before the sun-god Shamash.

Hammurabi commissioned this stele to display his own laws and his claim to divine justice.

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Photo of a tall black basalt stele with a rounded top. Carved relief at the top shows a standing figure at left facing a seated figure with a horned crown at right. Below, the stone is covered in rows of cuneiform script.
Stele with the Code of Hammurabi, c. 1792 BCE. Louvre Museum, Paris.

About this source

What it is

This is the tall basalt stele commissioned by Hammurabi, king of Babylon, to carry his collection of laws. It is held today in the Department of Near Eastern Antiquities of the Louvre.

Why it matters

At the top of the stele, Hammurabi is shown standing before Shamash, the Babylonian god of justice, who sits on a throne. This image was meant to show that the king's laws and authority came with divine approval. The object is one of the main surviving sources for understanding Old Babylonian law and kingship.

Look closer

  • What does the placement of the king facing the god tell you about how Hammurabi wanted to be seen?
  • Why carve this image on the same stone as the laws, instead of writing it separately?
  • What might be missing from this official image of justice?

This sculpture is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Hammurabi on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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Photo of the black basalt Code of Hammurabi stele on a dark background. The tall, tapering stone has a rounded top carved in relief with a standing figure facing a seated figure on a throne, and below are rows of carved cuneiform text.Document

Primary source

Code of Hammurabi

Hammurabi · c. 1753 BCE

Photograph of a clay cuneiform tablet, pale beige and roughly rectangular with a chipped upper-left corner, covered in wedge-shaped impressed signs in horizontal lines. It rests on a black stand against a dark background.Letter

Primary source

Letter from Hammurabi to Sîn-iddinam

Hammurabi · c. 1792-1750 BCE

Photograph of a cuneiform clay tablet on a display stand against a dark background. The tablet is pale beige, with a broken upper edge, and is covered in rows of wedge-shaped cuneiform signs. A museum label with a catalogue number is visible at the bottom.Document

Primary source

List of the year-names of Hammurabi's reign

Old Babylonian period, reign of Hammurabi (c. 1792-1750 BCE)

Five groups of black cuneiform wedge signs on a white background, rendered in a row. The signs are angular, made of wedge-shaped strokes arranged in clusters, and appear to be a short inscription.Document

Secondary source

Chronicle of Early Kings

Babylonian scribes · c. 6th century BCE copy

A tan clay cuneiform tablet, roughly rectangular with a broken upper-left corner, covered in rows of wedge-shaped cuneiform signs on its face. It rests on a clear acrylic stand against a grey background.Letter

Primary source

Letter from Hammurabi to Sîn-iddinam ordering a court hearing

Hammurabi · c. 1792-1750 BCE

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