Formation and development of the Bosporus kingdom: separate historical and legal aspects

Abstract

The article talks about the Bosporus kingdom as one of the states that managed to avoid annexation by Rome and preserved its autonomy for several centuries. This state was located in the Eastern Crimea and in the western part of the Taman Peninsula. Its capital was Panticapei (modern Kerch), which in ancient times was surrounded by nomadic (mainly Scythian and Sarmatian) peoples.
 It has been established that the Archeanactid dynasty ruled here at first, and from 438 to 109 B.C. - Spartokids dynasty. It was during the reign of Satyr I, Leukon I, Perisades I, Eumela I in the 4th century B.C. the Bosporus kingdom with its center in Panticapei reached its greatest power, an authoritarian system of government developed, and therefore, Bosporus came to be considered a kingdom with a monarchical form of government.
 The author analyzed the legal system of the Bosporus kingdom. It was found that the main sources of law were: the legislative activity of the kings of Bosporus, the rights of the Greek city-polises that were part of the Bosporus kingdom, and the customs of local tribes. Norms of civil law protected the interests of slave owners. Two main forms of ownership were defined: state and private. Land, slaves, cattle and movable property were owned. The main types of contracts were: purchase and sale, mine, loan and donation.
 The author also characterized the complex nature of marital and family relations. Agreements on the future marriage were usually concluded by the decision of the parents. A legal marriage resulted from an eggiesia, a formal private agreement between the head of the bride’s family, on the one hand, and the groom or his father, on the other.
 In the field of criminal law, the author established that the main types of crimes were: crimes against the state, against the community, and against a specific private person. However, the most serious crimes were often called adikia - a sin before the gods. The damage could be physical, moral or material.