World
PHARAOH’S LAWS
Justice in ancient Egypt
Brilliant, time-tested engineering structures all over the world, which may be as old as thousands of years old, never fail to fill us with awe. The pyramids trumpet the one-time talent of ancient engineers even today, however, no-one remembers who the pharaoh’s lawyer was, for instance. It is time to speak of the legislation and legislators of ancient Egypt. 6 Herend Herald
In order to establish order and peace in society, rules and laws are required, and people need to observe them – it was apparently well-known back in ancient Egypt over five thousand years ago. Whimsical rules The first monarch of the Egyptian Empire, Menes, is credited not only with uniting Lower and Upper Egypt but also with instituting the first laws in Egypt. His edicts, however, were short-lived, given that each pharaoh to follow was authorised to change them to his liking. This is why no law codes like that of Hammurapi from 18th century B.C. Mesopotamia survive. The laws of ancient Egypt were far from standard, they were not set in stone because, as historians say, they were like the River Nile: whimsical and changeable.
