Recently I was escorting a group of Chinese judges through the imposing white marble building on First Street N.E. in Washington that houses the Supreme Court of the United States. On the ground floor of that grand structure, in the corridor that leads to the imposing  statue of the Great Chief Justice, John Marshall, were multiple displays that gave accounts of the origins and history of the building, including details about its construction from the time the cornerstone was laid in 1932 to its completion in 1935. There were also detailed descriptions of some of its architectural features, including the friezes, or bas-relief sculptures situated high upon the north and south walls of the sole courtroom in the building, the solemn, dignified space where the justices sit to hear oral arguments.

The friezes on the south wall of the courtroom are depictions of  “law-givers” from the ancient world: Moses, Solomon, Lycurgus, Solon, Draco, Confucius and Octavian (Augustus Caesar). On the north wall are depictions of more recent law-givers: Justinian, Muhammad, Charlemagne, John of England, Louis IX of France, Hugo Grotius (father of international law), Sir William Blackstone, John Marshall, and Napoleon (for the Code Civile).

The displays also included a description of the figures on the large, imposing bronze doors at the main entrance to the building which leads to the Great Hall on the second floor. Those figures include Justinian with the Corpus Juris Civilis, King John with the Magna Carta, Chief Justice John Marshall and Justice Joseph Story. The display commentary announced that these figures “connected the Supreme Court to these ancient traditions.”

After viewing these displays I thought: what a wonderful reminder to visitors to the Court of the universality of law in terms of both place and time, because the figures represent different geographical parts of the world as well as different ages. They also serve as reminders of the debt that the United States and other nations owe to so many different legal systems that have contributed so many principles of law that are now a part of U.S. legal systems and legal tradition.

I also reflected on the fact that some of the figures in the friezes were representative of international law, including Justinian, Hugo Grotius, and Sir William Blackstone. Here in the Supreme Court of the United States was affirmation of the significant place that international law holds in the legal heritage of the United States. An inspiring thought for U.S. judges to remember, and for judges from other countries to remember as well.