The most unusual methods of execution. (18+ SHOCKING CONTENT!)

The gallows, guillotine, quartering, firing squad - all these methods of execution are standard and customary. But perhaps you can find out something new from the list below.

Scaphism

This type of execution is not only unusual, but also extremely painful. It is believed to have been invented in Persia. The condemned man was given milk and honey to drink, which caused severe indigestion. Then his whole body was smeared with honey and tied to the bottom of a wooden boat so that his arms and legs protruded over the sides. The unfortunate man was covered with another boat from above and then they allowed him to swim in a reservoir of stagnant water. Due to diarrhea, excrement accumulated inside the boat, and the terrible smell, along with the smell of honey, attracted the attention of numerous insects that swarmed the poor person from head to toe. In the end, a person died from severe shock, starvation and blood infection (sepsis) caused by numerous wounds and rotting flesh from biting insects and their larvae. To prolong the torment, the victim could sometimes be fed with honey and given milk. It is known that in 401 BC the Greek soldier who killed the son of Darius 2 was executed this was. The poor man died only 17 days later.

Republican marriage

This was a strange kind of execution, practiced mainly in France. If a man and a woman were to be executed, they were tied to each other with a rope and thrown to drown in the river.

Execution by elephants

Elephant execution was practiced mainly in Asian countries. The animal that was angered previously was released into a closed room where the convict was.

Mazzatello

Mazzatello execution was practiced in the Papal States in the 18th century and was used preferentially for criminals who committed serious crimes. This punishment consisted in the fact that the executioner struck the criminal on the head with an iron or wooden hammer, and in the event of a concussion of the executed, and not instant death, his throat was simply cut.

Execution by sawing

The method of death by sawing was widespread in Europe and Asia in the Middle Ages. The doomed was placed head down, spreading his legs and they started sawing him in the middle with a blunt saw.

Flaying

When skinning/flaying a living person, his skin was ripped off. This method was used to intimidate the crowd - the terrible screams of the unfortunate people were heard throughout the area. And the executioners also liked to sprinkle salt on the part of the body freed from the skin, from which the convict's suffering became unbearable and he, as a rule, died of painful shock. After the execution, the flayed skin was usually hung in a crowded place, where it, fluttering in the wind, reminded passers-by what was waiting for a violator of the law.

Blood eagle

According to legends, this terrible method of reprisal was used by the Vikings. Until now, there are debates among historians about whether this execution was practiced in the Scandinavian medieval countries, or whether it was a fiction invented to intimidate enemies. The victim was tied with his face to the wall and his back was ripped open, breaking the ribs in such a way that they protruded from the back (apparently, to the Vikings, this sight resembled the wings of an eagle). Sometimes the picture was supplemented by sticking out the lungs from the back, but more often a person died of painful shock at the beginning of the execution.

Charcoal roasting

The inquisitors burned heretics and witches alive at the stake, but compared to roasting on coals, this was a very light punishment. A person who had committed a serious crime was laid on an iron grate under which coals smoldered. The torment could last for several hours.

Execution by stones heaping

Planks tied together were put on the poor person, and then gradually, once every few hours, they piled weights on the planks, distributing them evenly over the entire area. Ultimately, the person who was lying was suffocating under the weight of the load.

Execution with bamboo

This method was used in Asian countries and was based on the amazing ability of bamboo to grow by 30 cm in one day. The accused person was laid on the ground with buried bamboo shoots, tied tightly so that he could not move, and left overnight. During the night, the bamboo slowly dug into the victim's body, causing the person’s terrible torment. In the end, the man died, pierced by dozens of bamboo shoots.