Being nailed in the vagina, paraded naked in the streets, having breasts crushed until severed, or being drilled in the vagina until death… these were some of the brutal punishments for women accused of adultery in ancient times.
Brutal Punishments for Women Who Commit Adultery
Finger Crushing
Finger crushing inflicts excruciating pain on women.
This was the most common torture instrument in ancient times. Women suspected of adultery would have four fingers placed in a device and then tightly crushed. There is a saying, “Ten fingers connected to the heart”; when the woman faints from pain, cold water would be splashed on her to revive her to endure more suffering. This form of finger crushing was widely used during the Tang, Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties.
Naked “Riding” the Wooden Horse in Public
The Wooden Horse is a horrifying punishment, torturing women both mentally and physically.
The Wooden Horse is a terrifying punishment that many believe is worse than death. When convicted of adultery, a woman would be stripped of all her clothes, tied to this horse-like device, and paraded through the streets.
A wooden phallus on the horse would penetrate the vagina and reach the uterus. As the horse moved, the wooden phallus would violently strike the vulva, causing the woman to bleed, suffer, and scream in agony. If she did not die, she would be left permanently disabled.
Many believe death is preferable to enduring the Wooden Horse punishment.
Cowhide Whipping
During the Song, Ming, and Qing dynasties, women in the imperial court guilty of adultery or disobedience would be stripped naked and tortured with corporal punishment (which involved whipping with a rod).
Those guilty of adultery would suffer painful skin tearing from cowhide whips.
Cowhide whips were also used by madams in brothels against courtesans who refused to obey.
Chastity Belt
This is a type of iron underwear, also known as “chastity belt”, designed for women deemed promiscuous. Husbands worried about their wives committing adultery would lock this device on their wives’ bodies, preventing them from engaging in sexual acts with other men.
Many women suffered due to this chastity belt.
Many women bled due to friction from the chastity belt, leading to infections and death.
Breast Crushing Until Severed
The breast crushing device was made from metal and wood with the purpose of deforming a woman’s breasts. Female prisoners charged with adultery, being pregnant without a husband, etc., often faced punishment with this device.
This horrifying device deforms women’s breasts.</span
Needle Torture to Blindness
This is an incredibly painful form of torture that causes the victim to scream in agony.
In feudal China, if a woman was discovered to be committing adultery or displaying promiscuous behavior, she would be tied to a post and have sharp needles poked into her eyes until she was blinded, ensuring she could no longer see any other men.
This method of torture was excruciatingly painful and left the victim screaming, yet it did not result in death.
Uterine Crushing
This punishment involved using a wooden pestle to strike the belly and chest of the offender, with the objective of causing severe damage to the uterus, thus permanently eliminating the individual’s reproductive capabilities.
Later, a physician during the Qing Dynasty provided a unique explanation for this punishment. He pointed out that there is a small bone located deep within a woman’s vagina known as the “shame bone.” Intense pressure could cause this bone to dislocate, sealing the vagina, rendering the punished individual incapable of sexual intercourse thereafter.
Vaginal Suturing
As the name suggests, this punishment refers to the act of suturing a woman’s vagina shut using needles and thread for those guilty of adultery. However, due to its painful and horrific nature, it was never officially sanctioned and only circulated as a folk tale.
To validate this punishment, there remains an ancient building in Haozhou, Anhui, China, specifically used for this form of punishment, known as “Suturing Tower.”
The Most Brutal Execution Methods in Human History
The Legend of the Famous “Silk Road” in History
Driven to Desperation, the Black-and-Yellow Snake Viciously Attacks the King Cobra
