Editing Capital punishment (section)

===Ancient history===
[[File:Jean-Léon Gérôme - The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer - Walters 37113.jpg|thumb|left|''The Christian Martyrs' Last Prayer'', by [[Jean-Léon Gérôme]] (1883). [[Roman Empire|Roman]] [[Circus Maximus]].]]
Elaborations of tribal arbitration of [[feud]]s included peace settlements often done in a religious context and compensation system. Compensation was based on the principle of ''substitution'' which might include material (for example, cattle, slaves, land) compensation, exchange of brides or grooms, or payment of the blood debt. Settlement rules could allow for animal blood to replace human blood, or transfers of property or [[Blood money (term)|blood money]] or in some case an offer of a person for execution. The person offered for execution did not have to be an original perpetrator of the crime because the social system was based on tribes and clans, not individuals. Blood feuds could be regulated at meetings, such as the [[Norsemen]] ''[[Thing (assembly)|things]]''.<ref>Lindow, ''op.cit.'' (primarily discusses Icelandic ''things'').</ref> Systems deriving from blood feuds may survive alongside more advanced legal systems or be given recognition by courts (for example, [[trial by combat]] or blood money). One of the more modern refinements of the blood feud is the [[duel]].

[[File:Schnorr_von_Carolsfeld_Bibel_in_Bildern_1860_187.png|thumb|[[Beheading of John the Baptist]], woodcut by [[Julius Schnorr von Karolsfeld]], 1860]]
In certain parts of the world, nations in the form of ancient republics, monarchies or tribal oligarchies emerged. These nations were often united by common linguistic, religious or family ties. Moreover, expansion of these nations often occurred by conquest of neighbouring tribes or nations. Consequently, various classes of royalty, nobility, various commoners and slaves emerged. Accordingly, the systems of tribal arbitration were submerged into a more unified system of justice which formalized the relation between the different "social classes" rather than "tribes". The earliest and most famous example is [[Code of Hammurabi]] which set the different punishment and compensation, according to the different class or group of victims and perpetrators. [[Capital punishment in the Bible|The Torah/Old Testament]] lays down the death penalty for murder,<ref>{{bibleverse|Genesis|9:6|HE}}, "Whosoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed."</ref> kidnapping, practicing magic, violation of the [[Shabbat|Sabbath]], blasphemy, and a wide range of sexual crimes, although evidence{{Specify|date=June 2023}} suggests that actual executions were exceedingly rare, if they occurred at all.<ref>{{Cite book|first=William|last=Schabas|year=2002|title=The Abolition of the Death Penalty in International Law|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-81491-1}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=June 2023}}

A [[Peshotanu (punishment)|Peshotanu]] was a condemned person in Ancient Persia. 

A further example comes from [[Ancient Greece]], where the [[Athenian]] legal system replacing [[customary law|customary]] [[oral law]] was first written down by [[Draco (lawgiver)|Draco]] in about 621 BC: the death penalty was applied for a particularly wide range of crimes, though [[Solon]] later repealed Draco's code and published new laws, retaining capital punishment only for intentional homicide, and only with victim's family permission.<ref>{{cite web|author=Robert|url=http://history-world.org/draco_and_solon_laws.htm|title=Greece, A History of Ancient Greece, Draco and Solon Laws|publisher=History-world.org|access-date=23 August 2010|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101021023919/http://history-world.org/draco_and_solon_laws.htm|archive-date=21 October 2010}}</ref> The word [[wikt:draconian|draconian]] derives from Draco's laws. The [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] also used the death penalty for a wide range of offences.<ref name=britannica>{{cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/93902/capital-punishment|title=capital punishment (law) – Britannica Online Encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Britannica.com|access-date=12 December 2012|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121122091559/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/93902/capital-punishment|archive-date=22 November 2012}}</ref>