The objective of this project was to compare the rules of inheritance in Mesopotamia based on legal provisions as well as documents that provide information about the practiced customary law and deviations from the ususal mode, and to show their development.
The practical aspects of inheritance law were to be examined on the basis of private documents (inheritance documents, dowry documents and receipts, asset transfers, information in purchase deeds, etc.): how inheritance divisions were realized, what the extent of inheritances were, what influence the mode of division had on the family structure and the economic resources of the next generation, and with which marriage strategies (dowries) the effects of these divisions were compensated.
Only by looking at the docuemnts in their archival context can one see how and to what extent the usual heritable succession was circumvented (e.g., through gifts, transfer of assets in the event of death, skipping a generation, or adoption), therefore the archival analysis had priority. It was also necessary to check what leeway was accorded to the testator for such testamentary dispositions.
Thus, the research project was intended to be interdisciplinary beyond legal historical aspects and contribute to answering socio-economic and demographic questions.
The rich cuneiform sources for inheritance law in ancient Mesopotamia already published were intended to be included, as well as unpublished archival material, for example from the British Museum, where possible.
