Death by horror: As Saudi beheads 12 people in 10 days, a look at some capital punishment methods in history

New Delhi: Saudi Arabia has executed 12 people in 10 days in drug-related offences. According to a report, the accused were sentenced to death on non-violent drug-related charges and beheaded using a sword.

Earlier, in March Saudi Arabia had executed 81 people convicted of a variety of crimes in the largest mass execution conducted in the country’s modern history.

In 2018, the Saudi administration tried to minimise capital punishment with only those found guilty of murder being subject to capital punishment.

Here are some of the gruesome capital punishment methods history has witnessed

The Brazen Bull

A device made by the Attic sculptor Perillos known as ‘the brazen bull’ was entirely made of bronze and was the size of a bull. The condemned was placed inside the hollow bull via a small door at the back. A great fire would be lit underneath, and the person inside would be slowly roasted alive.

There was a system of pipes inside the bull which would convert the screams of the burning victim into ‘mooing’ from the bull’s mouth.

Penalty Of The Sack(Poena Cullei)

The accused in this punishment was flogged or beaten before being sewn into a large sack and thrown into the river or the sea.

The Boats

The punishment began with the condemned being taken to a body of water and placed inside a boat. Another identical boat was then sealed on top of it to make a sort of shell, with the man’s arms, legs, and head sticking out of the sides.

He would then be force-fed honey and milk, covering his face and arms and legs with it too. After a time in the direct sun, his face and limbs would become completely covered with flies. Suffering diarrhoea in the boat, vermin would feed on the excrement and then also start to enter the man’s body and feed on that and devour him inside and out.

The Waist Chop

The ‘waist chop’ involved an executioner using a very large, bladed instrument to slice the prisoner into two at the waist, missing the vital organs and so causing a slow, painful death.

The ‘waist chop’ was not formally abolished in China until the 18th century.

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