The Arithmetic of Life in Premodern Siam: Ranking and Monetary Value in the Regime of Punishment

Abstract

Law had a role in enforcing social hierarchy in premodern Siam using numerical scales. Two systems are quite well-known: early titles referred to the number of people theoretically under the command of an officer, and the sakdina system ranked everyone below royalty on a numerical scale from 50 to 10,000. But there were two other systems, written into the old law codes, which ranked people in monetary terms, emphasizing that people were of unequal value. The first of these was the body-price, used to regulate pricing in the market for slaves, to determine compensation for causing death, and to set certain other punishments. The second was the system for setting fines for injuries resulting from personal disputes. Here the calculation took into account social rank, the extent of injury, the weapon used, and judicial discretion. With the exception of certain major crimes (murder, revolt, etc.), most other offences could be commuted into a fine. Monetary payment was thus the main form of punishment — a mark of premodern Ayutthaya as a market society.