02/18/2026
1. The Catherine Wheel (Breaking Wheel)
This was a common ex*****on method used from the Middle Ages through the early modern period.
The Process: The victim was tied to a large wooden wheel, and an ex*****oner would use a heavy iron bar or a hammer to systematically break the bones in their limbs.
The Result: Once the bones were shattered, the body was often "woven" through the spokes of the wheel and displayed atop a tall pole. The victim would be left there—sometimes still alive for days—to succumb to shock, dehydration, or scavenging birds.
2. Keelhauling
This was a brutal form of corporal punishment used primarily by the Dutch and British navies in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The Process: A sailor was tied to a rope that passed under the belly of the ship (the keel). They were then dragged from one side of the ship to the other—or along its entire length—underwater.
The Result: Beyond the risk of drowning, the ship’s hull was usually covered in sharp barnacles. These would shred the victim's skin as they were dragged along, leading to massive blood loss and infection if they survived the initial trauma.
3. Bamboo Punishment
While often debated by historians as to its frequency, this was a form of "slow" ex*****on attributed to parts of East and South Asia.
The Process: The victim was securely tied down over a patch of young, sharp bamboo shoots.
The Result: Bamboo is one of the fastest-growing plants on Earth (some species can grow nearly a meter in 24 hours). The sharp stalks would eventually pierce through the victim’s body as they grew, causing a slow, incredibly painful death via internal perforation.
4. Black Death Body Collectors
While not a "punishment" in the legal sense, this was a grim social role forced upon the poor or those who had already survived the plague during the 14th-century pandemic.
The Role: Collectors pushed carts through the streets, crying out for people to "bring out your dead." They were responsible for clearing the massive number of corpses from homes and streets.
The Risk: The job was essentially a death sentence. While the "Plague Doctor" mask (shown in the image) was a later 17th-century invention intended to protect physicians with aromatic herbs, the average body collector had little more than a cart and a prayer to protect them from the fleas and bacteria.
