The Big Book of Pain: Torture & Punishment Through History (53 page)

Masks of shame – or Branks, as they were more commonly known – came in a wide variety of fantastical forms. Their variation is dependent in part on the imagination of the craftsman who constructed them and in part due to regional differences or variety of offence.

Here we see a variety of fantastical branks. Clockwise from top left: a donkey mask with a sealed mouth; followed by a boar’s head; then the mask of a monarch or pope; and finally what appears to be an ass or sheep. Centre is a German postcard depicting a shrewish wife being publicly shamed for the ‘house dragon’ she is seen to be.

These devices are known as ‘neck-catchers’ and would have been used in a variety of ways and for a variety of reasons. They might be used to lead a prisoner from his holding cell to the torture room and back. They might have been used to escort a condemned man or woman to their place of execution, or they may have been used to parade criminals through the streets. It is clear to see that once the device surrounds someone’s neck, there is very little hope of escape or independent action other than to cooperate with whomever has hold of the pole. In the detailed image at the top of the page you can appreciate the ingenious mechanism which allows for the device to be easily slipped about someone’s neck, but with little hope of them getting out. Using this device a victim could be coordinated and coerced even without any actual contact.

This is the innocently named ‘Pear’. But this devilish device is anything but innocent. The operational mechanism (clearly demonstrated by the two images below) works by twisting the filigree handle so that the ‘petals’ of the pear open outward and can only be contracted by reversing the screw mechanism. This would have been inserted into the vagina or anus and then cranked open with obvious horrific results, or even have been inserted into the mouth and cranked open until the teeth shattered and the jaw dislocated. It is yet another example of where the artistic, beautifully designed and crafted device hides a dark and sinister purpose.

These images depict various forms of restraint. At the top of the page to the right you can see depicted both shackles and manacles for the wrists and ankles as well as a set of thumbscrews or thumbcuffs in the centre of the grouping.