This concise intellectual history of the law offers an accessible introduction to the ideas and contexts of law from ancient Babylon to eighteenth-century Europe. Robert W. Shaffern examines a rich array of sources to illuminate ideas about law and justice in Western civilization. He identifies four main sources for traditional jurisprudence--the civilizations of the Fertile Crescent and classical Athens, the legal legacy of ancient Rome, the legal traditions of the Middle Ages, and developments in early modern Europe. By focusing on the recurring issues and historical contexts of the law,...

This concise intellectual history of the law offers an accessible introduction to the ideas and contexts of law from ancient Babylon to eighteenth-century Europe. Robert W. Shaffern examines a rich array of sources to illuminate ideas about law and justice in Western civilization. He identifies four main sources for traditional jurisprudence--the civilizations of the Fertile Crescent and classical Athens, the legal legacy of ancient Rome, the legal traditions of the Middle Ages, and developments in early modern Europe. By focusing on the recurring issues and historical contexts of the law,...