The 15 Most Brutal Methods Of Execution Of All Time

By Queuebot in Crime & Law on Oct 20, 2009 at 8:21 am

Human beings seemingly really enjoy getting creative with their cruelty, as these (mostly) out of fashion methods of execution illustrate, including the Spanish Tickler:

Used to tear open the victim’s skin, this weapon could rip through anything, including muscle and bone. The victim was tied up naked, sometimes in public, and then the torturers begin mutilating them. Usually starting on the limbs and working inward, the neck and face were always saved for last.

Warning: the article ~~may be~~ is disturbing. Link

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by redsfaithful.

Tags: execution

Neat stuff from the NeatoShop:

Jerome
Oct 20th, 2009 at 8:58 am
What’s neat about torture??
Raymond
Oct 20th, 2009 at 8:58 am
The Spanish Tickler, eh? I wonder if it was called that at the time it was in use or if that nickname came later?
Gauldar
Oct 20th, 2009 at 9:47 am
Yeah, we’ve already had previous posts on torture techniques in previous posts; I don’t think people are in dire need of more information of them.
Tim Giachetti
Oct 20th, 2009 at 10:22 am
Well, then, You should have voted it down in the queue. I up voted because I do think it’s neat. Know your past as the future always repeats itself. Better understanding of what human nature is capable of and you are more capable of avoiding it. Now quit bitching and become more involved in the voting on the queue.
argon
Oct 20th, 2009 at 10:32 am
My Opinion is that is was in dire need of more information about this, also I think knowing more about the interesting parts of history (a.k.a. this article) is really neat!
Gauldar
Oct 20th, 2009 at 11:19 am
Ok, well looks like it’s 50/50 for those in favour of more posts about human suffering. Personally, I’m indifferent, I was just questioning if the regular neatorama readers/commenters to know more about the subject, no need to get snippy Tim. To peak your interest, about you take a look at this for more of a modern view of “un-anticipated” torture. I found it to be an interesting article.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/10/19
Sharon McEachern
Oct 20th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Cruel human beings seem to be a fact of nature — physically they are different. Recent research shows that some people’s brains are just wired differently, sadistically, to enjoy others’ pain. Their brains are physically different — literally, as reported at:

http://www.ethicsoup.com/2008/11/bullies-may-be-wired-in-brain-to-enjo y-others-pain.html#more

Doctors who participate in state executions in the U.S. are considered unethical and the physician medical groups, responsible for licensure of doctors, tell members not to be at executions (not even to declare death certifications) or lose their license to practice medicine. There’s a really good post on execution doctors at:

http://www.ethicsoup.com/2008/11/execution-doctors-unethical-whether-h anging-electrocution-gas-or-lethan-injection.html#more
SenorMysterioso
Oct 20th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
Guillotine seems pretty tame so far as suffering goes, even if your brain still works post chop it cant be for much longer than a second or two and might not feel any pain. Now if it doesnt sever your head and gets stuck half way through youre in for a world of hurt.

I think I read a story about Lethal Injection methods in the US being questioned now. Something about being consciously suffocating and not being able to scream out rather than just going to sleep then having your systems shut down. Id take guillotine over that.
OhYes
Oct 20th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Any knowledge is neat. Suffering sucks, but ignoring it and not learning from it sucks even more.

I had never herd of the metal bull form of punishment. hat one sounds just absolutely brutal. It’s even worse than burning at the stake because you’re isolated all by yourself and left to think only about the pain.
PAgent
Oct 20th, 2009 at 1:10 pm
Any such list is incomplete without mentioning “Breaking on the Wheel”, one of history’s most horrific execution methods.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breaking_wheel
Gail Pink
Oct 20th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Yeah, Torture Porn – Neat! :\
Christophe
Oct 20th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Gauldar, you never know : it may be of some use if you become a dictator one day.
knowledge is power.
Justin
Oct 20th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
“Warning: the article may be is disturbing.”

I like the disclaimer AFTER you have already described the Spanish Tickler.
Tronconneuse
Oct 20th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Guillotine is not a brutal way to exectute somebody. That’s an evolution of executions. Before that, other way to execute were crual. Not Guillotine.
That has no place in this top 15..
BlessedBlogger
Oct 20th, 2009 at 2:46 pm
I was surprised that impalement didn’t make the list. Vlad The Impaler anyone? Days of suffering the most excruciating pain possible in the full view of the world surrounded by rotting corpses. How did that not make the list? Or what about being pulled in half by animals/weights/vehicles? Sounds pretty awful to me. I imagine being eaten alive would also be pretty horrible.
zavatone
Oct 20th, 2009 at 4:14 pm
Wow! That’s neat! Well, no. No it isn’t. It’s like when one of Boing Boing’s (a directory of wonderful things) guest editors posting an article posting the 10 best castrations. WTF. I don’t visit them anymore after that. There is no need for this on Neatorama, so please don’t do it. Mmmmkay?
scot
Oct 20th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
What? No dog-piling of naked prisoners? No sleep deprivation? No pouring of water over a head? No loud music? Where’s the real torture?
Tuna
Oct 20th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
I don’t understand all the problems with lethal injection. I mean, junkies do it every day with just 1 chemical (and apparently enjoy it too), not the 2 or 3 that are used for criminals which results in complication and possible mistakes. Why not just give them a massive overdose of an opiate of some kind?
Reechard
Oct 20th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
I think this one is the most “creative” and cruel. It’s pretty sick to think that a person thought about and came up with this

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scaphism
BamaChris
Oct 21st, 2009 at 10:21 am
Wow, this is crazy.
Chad Cloman
Oct 21st, 2009 at 12:57 pm
I agree with PAgent — any list like this that doesn’t include “Breaking on the Wheel” is incomplete.
Morz
Oct 22nd, 2009 at 8:02 am
Geez some of you are whingers. Oh no this isn’t neat I don’t like it. That’s ok, just don’t read it. Some of us found it interesting.

Keep track of the comments with

Comment RSS

Lijit Search

The latest from NeatoBambino: