Profili giuridici della gestazione per altri fra precedenti storici e prospettive moderne

The phenomenon of surrogacy represents nowadays one of the most sensitive topics in the legal debate. Its multi-level complexity requires a constitutionally oriented interpretation that aligns with principles emerging at a supranational level. Moreover, the analysis of this issue from a historical perspective helps to better frame the terms of the debate, in light of the intrinsically historical nature of law. The latter should be seen as a tool for enabling peaceful coexistence in a free society, whose values, however, are bound to change over time. The article presents an overview of antiquity, broadening the scope of analysis to practices that emerge from testimonies dating back to the earliest Mesopotamian cultures, the Hebrew culture of the Old Testament and some references to Greek culture. It then proceeds to the examination of the numerous sources that attest to the practice of the so-called cession of the wife in archaic and classical Roman culture, with potential echoes even into Late Antiquity.