This page intentionally left blank International Law in Antiquity This study of the origins of international law combines techniquesof intellectual history and historiography to investigate the earliest developments of the law of nations. The book examines the sources, processes, and doctrines of international legal obligation in antiquity to reevaluate the critical attributes of international law. David J. Bederman focuses on three essential areas in which law influenced ancient State relations – diplomacy, treaty-making, and warfare – in a detailed analysis of international relations inthe Near East (2800–700 BCE), the Greek city-States (500–338BCE), and Rome (358–168 BCE). Containing up-to-date literature and archeological evidence, this study does not merely catalogue instances of recognition by ancient States ofthese seminal features of international law: it accounts forrecurrent patterns of thinking and practice. This comprehensive analysis of international law and State relations in ancient times provides a fascinating study for lawyers and academics, ancient historians and classicists alike. david j. bederman is Professor of Law at Emory University’s School of Law in Atlanta, Georgia. His previous publications cover such diverse subjects as international legaltheory and history, the law of the sea and international environment, the law of State responsibility and international claims, US constitutional law of foreign relations, and maritime law. cambridge studies in international and comparative law This series (established in 1946 by Professors Gutteridge, Hersch Lauterpacht and McNair) is a forum for high quality studies in the fields of public and private international and comparative law. Although these are distinct sub-disciplines, developments since 1946 confirm their interrelationship. Comparative law is increasingly used as a tool in the making of law at national, regional and international levels. Private international law is now often affected by international conventions, and the issues faced by classical conflicts rules are frequently dealt with by substantive harmonisation of law under international auspices. Mixed international arbitrations, especially those involving state economic activity, raise mixed questions of public and private international law, while in many fields (such as the protection of human rights and democratic standards, investment guarantees, and international criminal law) international and national systems interact. National constitutional arrangements relating to “foreign affairs”, and to the implementation of international norms, are a focus of attention. Professor Sir Robert Jennings edited the series from 1981. Following his retirement as General Editor, an editorial board has been created and Cambridge University Press has recommitted itself to the series, affirming its broad scope. The board welcomes works of a theoretical or interdisciplinary character, and those focusing on new approaches to international or comparative law or conflict of law. Studies of particular institutions or problems are equally welcome, as are translations of the best work published in other languages. General Editors James Crawford David Johnston Editorial Board Professor Hilary Charlesworth University of Adelaide Mr John Collier Trinity Hall, Cambridge Professor Lori Damrosch Columbia University Law School Professor John Dugard Director, Research Centre for International Law, University of Cambridge Professor Mary-Ann Glendon Harvard Law School Professor Christopher Greenwood London School of Economics Professor Hein Kötz Max-Planck-Institut, Hamburg Professor D. M. McRae University of Ottawa Professor Onuma Yasuaki University of Tokyo Advisory Committee Professor D. W. Bowett QC Judge Rosalyn Higgins QC Professor Sir Robert Jennings QC Professor J. A. Jolowicz QC Professor Sir Eli Lauterpacht QC Professor Kurt Lipstein Judge Stephen Schwebel A list of books in the series can be found at the end of this volume International Law in Antiquity David J. Bederman           The Pitt Building, Trumpington Street, Cambridge, United Kingdom    The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 2RU, UK 40 West 20th Street, New York, NY 10011-4211, USA 477 Williamstown Road, Port Melbourne, VIC 3207, Australia Ruiz de Alarcón 13, 28014 Madrid, Spain Dock House, The Waterfront, Cape Town 8001, South Africa http://www.cambridge.org ©David J. Bederman, 2004 First published in printed format 2001 ISBN 0-511-03166-1 eBook (Adobe Reader) ISBN 0-521-79197-9 hardback For my Father, who sets the highest standards