The Stocks or Pillory

The victim, with his or her hands and feet locked into the pertinent holes and bracket irons, was set out in the square, where the mob, in the mildest of cases, poked him, slapped him and besmirched him with feces and urine: substances supplied by the ubiquitous chamber pots and open jakes, and smeared into his mouth, ears, nose, hair; but in many instances he –more often she– was beaten badly, stoned, burnt, cut and even severely mutilated. Incessant tickling on the soles of the feet and in the flanks also soon became unbearable.

Only the most innocuous transgressors could hope to get away with no more than a few black-and-blue marks and a couple of bumps.

Children’s books, cinema, television and the modern image industry generally often portray the stocks in humorous colors, centered on a grumpy victim being cajoled and reviled, but always benevolently, by his rough-and-tumble neighbors. Reality was different.

Information and photographs in this virtual exhibition proceed from the book Torture instruments; a bilingual guide to the exhibition Torture Instruments form the Middle Ages to the Industrial Era presented in various cities in the world in 1983-2000.