The ancient king who issued a code that included 'an eye for an eye' and sought to control the Euphrates by defeating Rim-Sin of Larsa?

• A. Rim-Sin
• B. Sargon
• C. Hammurabi
• D. Nebuchadnezzar

Answer: (C)

This question hinges on recognizing the ruler who produced a famous law code and who led campaigns to control the Euphrates by defeating Rim-Sin of Larsa. That ruler is Hammurabi, the Babylonian king who reigned in the 18th century BCE. He issued the Code of Hammurabi, a comprehensive set of laws carved on a stele and used to govern daily life across his realm. The code is best known for its principle of lex talionis, often summarized as “an eye for an eye,” which expresses proportional punishment.

At the same time, Hammurabi pursued military campaigns to expand and secure his territory along the Euphrates, culminating in the defeat of Rim-Sin, the ruler of Larsa. This victory helped unify southern Mesopotamia under Babylonian control, linking law and empire in a way that’s unique to Hammurabi. By contrast, Sargon the Great lived earlier and founded the Akkadian Empire, Nebuchadnezzar II came later in the Neo-Babylonian period, and Rim-Sin of Larsa was the adversary Hammurabi defeated rather than the author of the code.