KIng Hammurabi of Babylon » (1st Edition)

Marc Van De Mieroop is Professor of Ancient Near East History at Columbia University, New York. He has written numerous books and articles, including most recently A History of the Ancient Near East, c. 3000–323 BC (Blackwell Publishing, 2004).

This is the first biography in English of King Hammurabi, who ruled Babylon from 1792 to 1750 BC and presents a rounded view of his accomplishments.

• Describes how Hammurabi dealt with powerful rivals and extended his kingdom.
  
• Draws on the King’s own writings and on diplomatic correspondence that has only recently become available.
  
• Explores the administration of the kingdom and the legacies of his rule, especially his legal code.
  
• Demonstrates how Hammurabi’s conquests irrevocably changed the political organization of the Near East, so that he was long remembered as one of the great kings of the past.
  
• Written to be accessible to a general audience.