The Judas Cradle, also known as the Judas chair, is a torture device attributed [by whom?] by legend to the Spanish Inquisition. Though in popular culture it is still occasionally claimed that the Judas Cradle was a medieval torture instrument, thus far it has proved impossible to locate the device in the historical record of the Middle Ages.[unsupported attribution] In Italian it is the culla di Giuda; in German the Judaswiege; and in French the la veille - "the wake" or "nightwatch" (as when the muscles contracted the victim could not fall asleep).
The Judas Chair is a pyramid-shaped seat. The victim would presumably be placed on top of it, with the point inserted into their anus, vagina or scrotum, then very slowly lowered by ropes. Supposedly the intended effect was to stretch the orifice over a long period of time, or to slowly impale.
Some have imagined another use for this device based on the idea that the raising or lowering of the victim could change the pressure. The pyramid shaped seat is able to stretch the anus or the vagina, but the point of the pyramid may have been used to cause pain by pressing against the inside of the orifice. This contrasts to the notion of stretching, in that the actual torture is caused not by the stretching of the vagina or anus, but by the different effects achieved by positioning the victim against the pyramid's point. Additionally, stretching of the anus or vagina could result in rips and tears causing pain and even death.
Contents |
A similar device, known as a horse, is sometimes said to have been used in Prussia to discipline soldiers. This device was not designed to break the skin but instead cause damage to the genitals.[1]