Fault, Responsibility, and Administrative Law in Late Babylonian Legal Texts

F. Rachel Magdalene; Cornelia Wunsch; Bruce Wells

Published by Penn State University Press 2019

Fault, Responsibility, and Administrative Law in Late Babylonian Legal Texts

F. Rachel Magdalene , Cornelia Wunsch and Bruce Wells

Volume 23 in the series Mesopotamian Civilizations

https://doi.org/10.1515/9781646020263

Overview
Contents

About this book

This book presents a reassessment of the governmental systems of the Late Babylonian period—specifically those of the Neo-Babylonian and early Persian empires—and provides evidence demonstrating that these are among the first to have developed an early form of administrative law.

The present study revolves around a particular expression that, in its most common form, reads ḫīṭu ša šarri išaddad and can be translated as “he will be guilty (of an offense) against the king.” The authors analyze ninety-six documents, thirty-two of which have not been previously published, discussing each text in detail, including the syntax of this clause and its legal consequences, which involve the delegation of responsibility in an administrative context. Placing these documents in their historical and institutional contexts, and drawing from the theories of Max Weber and S. N. Eisenstadt, the authors aim to show that the administrative bureaucracy underlying these documents was a more complex, systematized, and rational system than has previously been recognized.

Accompanied by extensive indexes, as well as transcriptions and translations of each text analyzed here, this book breaks new ground in the study of ancient legal systems.

Author / Editor information

Magdalene F. Rachel :

F. Rachel Magdalene is the author of On the Scales of Righteousness: Neo-Babylonian Trial Law and the Book of Job.Wunsch Cornelia :

Cornelia Wunsch is Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. Her most recent book, CUSAS 28: Documents of Judean Exiles and West Semites in Babylonia in the Collection of David Sofer, is coauthored with Laurie Pearce and published Eisenbrauns.Wells Bruce :

Bruce Wells is Associate Professor of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of The Law of Testimony in the Pentateuchal Codes and coeditor, along with F. Rachel Magdalene, of Law from the Tigris to the Tiber: The Writings of Raymond Westbrook, the latter also published by Eisenbrauns.

Topics

Frontmatter Publicly Available Download PDF	i
Contents Publicly Available Download PDF	vii
Preface Publicly Available Download PDF	xi
List of Texts Publicly Available Download PDF	xiii
List of Tables Publicly Available Download PDF	xiv
List of Abbreviations Publicly Available Download PDF	xv
Part I: Analysis
Chapter One. Introduction Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	1
Chapter Two. The ḫīṭu-Clause and Its Interpretation Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	31
Chapter Three. The ḫīṭu-Documents and the Duties behind Them Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	59
Chapter Four. The ḫīṭu-Documents from Non-Judicial Contexts Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	79
Chapter Five. The ḫīṭu-Documents from Judicial Contexts Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	143
Chapter Six. On History and Theory: Administrative Law and Bureaucracy in Ancient Times Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	175
Chapter Seven. Quasi-Bureaucracy and Administrative Law in the Late Babylonian Period Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	263
Part II: Texts
Text Editions with Copies Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	341
Text Editions without Copies Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	435
Abstracts of Texts in Forthcoming Publications Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	527
Bibliography Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	529
Indexes
Documents Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	585
Akkadian Words Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	591
Personal Names in Part II Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	595
Geographic Names in Part II Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	623
Divine Names in Part II Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	627
Authors Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	629
Subjects Requires Authentication Unlicensed Licensed Download PDF	637

Language: English
Publisher: Penn State University Press
Audience: Professional and scholarly;
Pages
- Main content: 744
Illustrations
- Illustrations: 51
- Images: 51
- Other: 51 illustrations
Keywords: Neo-Babylonian; Neo-Babylonian Empire; Neo-Babylonian law; Persian; Persian; Empire; Persian law; ancient law; Mesopotamian Law; administrative law; Max Weber; Shmuel N. Eisenstadt; bear sin; carry sin

eBook

Published: January 10, 2020
ISBN: 9781646020263