What ancient code of laws is displayed in the Louvre?

The ancient code of laws displayed in the Louvre is the Code of Hammurabi. Its best-known surviving copy is a tall black-basalt stele inscribed in cuneiform, now exhibited in the museum’s Richelieu wing.

The text was produced during the reign of Hammurabi, king of Babylon, around 1750 BCE. It opens with a prologue and ends with an epilogue praising the king; between them are legal judgments covering subjects such as property, trade, marriage, inheritance, labor, and personal injury. The rules are often phrased as “if…then” cases.

The stele was discovered at Susa, in present-day Iran, during French excavations in 1901–1902. It had been carried there centuries earlier, probably as booty from a Babylonian conquest. A relief at the top shows Hammurabi before Shamash, the Mesopotamian sun god associated with justice.

A common mix-up is calling it the oldest law code. Earlier Mesopotamian collections, including the Code of Ur-Nammu, are older, while Hammurabi’s is famous for its completeness, preservation, and influence on modern ideas about ancient law.