Ancient True Crime: Murder, Conspiracy, and Law in the Ancient World

Catalog description

Harem conspiracies, kings’ assassinations, and self-defense killings. The history of murder, violence, and criminal investigation is as old as humankind. In this course, we will be seeing how crime was perceived and punished in ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece, and Rome. From mythical accounts of murders to real records of trials of humans, animals, and even objects accused of homicide, we will analyze how aspects of social status or gender played a role in shaping punishment across ancient civilizations. We will look at three ancient cold cases, and perhaps you may be able to help solve an ancient mystery! At the end of the semester we will recreate ancient trials using the same crime, evidence, and participants, but following the law and procedures of each one of the civilizations covered in this course. Will the verdict and sentence be any different?