Although believed to have originated during the Middle Ages, the first known iron maidens were constructed in the 19th century.

The Iron Maiden

The pillory was designed as a form of public shaming without causing significant peril to the body. It was formally abolished in England and Wales in 1837. However, the stocks remained in use, though extremely infrequently, until 1872.

Pillory

This form of torture was first described by Hippolytus De Marsiliis in Italy in the 15th or 16th century.

Chinese Water Torture

Scholars believe that the Brazen Bull, which Italian poet and philosopher Dante referenced in the Inferno, is likely a myth or at least highly embellished.

Brazen Bull

One famous victim was the English writer and Protestant preacher Anne Askew. In 1546, yeoman warders tortured her on the rack and asked her to name Protestant sympathizers.

The Rack

Also known as the Wheel of Catherine, Catherine Wheel, or simply the Wheel. It was a torture method used for public execution primarily in Europe from antiquity through the Middle Ages into the early modern period.

The Breaking Wheel

Yeoman warders at the Tower of London used this as a torture device during the 16th and 17th centuries.

The Scavenger's Daughter

his device comes from Europe’s early modern period (c. 1450 to 1750).

Thumbscrew

Scholars have suggested that the story of the Iron Apega was an allegorical one and did not really exist.