In 621 B.C., the Athenian legislator Draco wrote the first national judicial code. Justice, which had previously been a private matter, for the first time was meted out publicly, through proclamation of the code and public trials. Although this was a significant accomplishment, Draco is remembered instead for the code’s stringent penalties. Athenians claimed he wrote “not with ink but with blood.” In the Fourth Century B.C., the Athenian statesman Solon was tasked with revising the code. And so, in English a “Solon” is a wise lawgiver, while things perceived as exceedingly harsh are referred to as “Draconian.”
