5-hole wooden stock at Oakham
I wondered why there were five holes and this is the explanation I found out:
Five-hole stocks
originate from Roman times when the arms, legs and head were confined which was
more a form of torture than a shaming punishment.
It
is more likely with the Oakham example that juveniles or women could have both
legs confined to one hole so they could not wriggle free. Sometimes men were
also confined by one leg alone. It is also believed that more than one man
could be detained at a time, probably on alternative sides.
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Oh Sally, what wonderful photos you have for this week. :D
ReplyDeleteThe stocks look painful and uncomfortable no matter how many limbs are confined. People suffered starvation and dehydration in those things.
ReplyDeleteThat is a lovely photo essay. I love clock towers.
The punishments that were used, mind-blowing! Great photography!
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ReplyDeleteI just sigh looking at the lock. My "dream vacation" is to rent a narrowboat and test my skill on the locks. We plan to be in England early June, (if the coronavirus doesn't get in the way) but we just can't squeeze a couple days of canal cruising into our itinerary. I will have to satisfy my wanderlust with youtube videos, I guess.
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