Today we took more notes off the powerpoint and then read some of Hammurabi's Code. Hammurabi's Code was the first code of laws. Some of the laws are very specific and seem slightly unnecessary like number 192, that says "If an adopted son says to his adoptive father or mother: "You are not my father or my mother," his tongue shall be cut off.". A lot of the laws deal with adultery, incest, and fighting one another. A lot of these laws have weirdly cruel punishments, such as number 110, which says "If a holy woman opens a tavern door or enters a tavern for a drink, she shall be burned to death". Burning someone to death for drinking seems really severe in my opinion, but I guess it was a bigger deal back then.
- The district known as Sumer occupied the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
- Populations increased dramatically due to new irrigation techniques
- Cities and towns were founded, some with 40,000 inhabitants
- better food storage allowed for diversity in professions: priests, tradesmen, artisans, politicians, and farmers
- a pantheon of Sumerian gods & goddesses emerged, with many representing the natural elements of the world
- the worlds first epic was the "Epic of Gilgamesh", which told of a great flood
- the Ziggurat was a Sumerian temple built on a mountain of land
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