This can also be seen in the laws of the Sumerian king of Lagash, Urukgina.
Dating to around 2415 BC these are
the earliest set of laws found to date. They contain a code imposing
monogamy only on women. If the woman breaks this
law she is "stoned with stones (upon which is inscribed her evil) intent"8.
Also, Urukgina apparently legalised wife-beating:
"The woman who has sinned by saying something to the man which she should
not have said ... must have her teeth crushed
with burnt bricks upon which ... her guilty deed has been inscribed."9 This
code seems to be conclusive evidence of the
position of women, Kramer describes it as "one of the most precious
revealing documents in the history of man."10
However, there is no evidence, as there is with the Laws of Hammurabi for
example, that Urukgina's code was
employed over the whole of Sumer. In 2415 BC, the cities of Sumer were still
very territorial and constant wars took
place; Gilgamesh's attack on Kish, is just one example, there are many
others. Bearing this in mind it is unlikely that one
king's code would be used throughout the whole of Sumer. It does show us,
though, the opinion of one king, on the place
of women in society and it is not wrong to assume that this view may have
been shared by others.