Beyond that, a case had to be taken to the capital, where it
would be heard by a higher judge. Th e appeal aft er that was to
the king himself. A king probably devoted part of every day
to hearing legal appeals.
A person on trial probably was not compelled to testify.
Neither the accused person nor any witnesses would be tor-
tured in order to force testimony. Everyone was subject to the
law, including judges and nobility. A diff erence in punish-
ment between a noble and a commoner may have been that
a noble was punished in private while a commoner was pub-
licly humiliated. Convicted thieves were required to repay
their victims or became slaves to their victims. Slavery was
dangerous. In some cities slaves could be freed aft er fulfi lling
their obligations to their victims or for virtuous behavior, but
the Maya practiced human sacrifi ce, and slaves were usually
the fi rst to be sacrifi ced.
Th e marketplace was an essential part of the economic
and social life of Mayan villages, towns, and cities. Crimes
committed in marketplaces were taken seriously. Apparently,
some Mayan cities had police forces that patrolled market-
places, and anyone could complain to them about someone
dishonestly weighing or measuring their goods, about some-
one selling stolen goods, or about shoplift ers. Judges were
available to hear such complaints almost immediately, and it
was possible for a case to be tried and resolved before the day
was over.
People could fi le lawsuits, and there may have been law-
yers to help them. Adultery, criminal business dealings, and
breech of contract could draw lawsuits. Th e same judges who
heard criminal cases would hear civil cases. Th e loser of a
lawsuit could be fi ned, in which case his or her family would
be summoned to make payment. If the family could not make
payment, the defendant and some of his or her family could
be forced to become slaves.
Judges worked long hours, probably beginning to hear
cases within moments aft er sunrise. Th ey were expected
to be examples of virtue to other people, and if they were
caught committing crimes, they could be put to death. If
they were found to be taking bribes or showing prejudice by
favoring nobles over commoners or the reverse, they prob-
ably were executed. Being drunk while at work also brought
penalties. Even the highest judge below the king was subject
to punishment.
Laws may have been written down, but at present it ap-
pears that the laws of the Maya may have been transmitted
verbally, perhaps by experts who memorized the laws. Scribes
held a high place in Mayan society, and some of them may
have been assigned to record court proceedings, especially
testimony by witnesses. Th e highest courts in a city almost
certainly had scribes. Mayan laws may have derived in part
from those of previous civilizations, especially the Olmec,
and their laws certainly infl uenced cultures even as late as the
Aztecs. How far they infl uenced communities north or south
of Mayan lands is not really known, but some archaeologist
speculate that Mayan laws infl uenced cultures in what is now
the southwestern United States.
Th e laws of the cultures south of the Maya are mostly un-
known. Archaeologists are only just discovering some of the
civilizations that existed in South America, in part because
the earliest ones seem to have built their structures mostly
of dirt, which has left mounds only recently recognized as
remnants of structures, and in part because they existed in
places in the mountains that are hard to reach and very dan-
gerous. Given the sophistication of the arts and craft s of some
of these ancient cultures as well as their evidently vigorous
trade, they probably had laws governing social conduct and
the means to enforce those laws. It is known that most Ande-
ans were expected to treat strangers well and that their pun-
ishments were severe.See also art; crafts; crime and punishment; empires
and dynasties; festivals; gender structures and
roles; government organization; literature; occu-
pations; religion and cosmology; roads and bridges;
slaves and slavery; social organization; trade and
exchange; writing.Precepts of the prefect, the lord Ptah-hotep, under the
Majesty of the King of the South and North, Assa, living
eternally forever.Th e prefect, the feudal lord Ptah-hotep, says:... Who
will cause me to have authority to speak, that I may
declare to him the words of those who have heard the
counsels of former days? And the counsels heard of thegods, who will give me authority to declare them? Cause
that it be so and that evil be removed from those that
are enlightened; send the double... Th e majesty of this
god says: Instruct him in the sayings of former days. It
is this which constitutes the merit of the children of the
great. All that which makes the soul equal penetrates
him who hears it, and that which it says produces no
satiety.Th e Precepts of the Vizier Ptah-hotep, ca. 2350 b.c.e.
Egypt(cont inued)laws and legal codes: The Americas 631