Hammurabi

Hammurabi will be one of the key historical figures in book two of the Timekeepers series.  Because of this, I have been eagerly studying  both Hammurabi and Babylonian civilization during the time of his reign.
Hammurabi, who ruled from 1792 to 1750 BC, is the most famous king of the first dynasty of Babylon.  Prior to his accession to the throne, Babylon was one of the many city-states that blanketed Mesopotamia, having taken in a few neighboring city-states as well, reaching a modest size of 60 by 160 kilometers.  By the end of Hammurabi’s reign, Babylonian territory had grown to encompass all the land stretching southward between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers from what is modern Baghdad to the Persian Gulf.
Hammurabi is most famous for his law code consisting of more than 300 laws which are carved on a stone stela and now on  display in the Louvre Museum in Paris.  Besides being an early promoter of justice, Hammurabi was also a great ruler, diplomat, and warrior.  He is also known for the broad array of public works projects he oversaw throughout Babylonia.
Many details of Hammurabi’s reign have been revealed through cuneiform tablets found at the site of an ancient palace at Mari, a palace internationally renowned for its splendor.  Its archives are a bountiful source of information for the history of the entire region at that time.