Ancient Chinese execution techniques.

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Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« on: September 05, 2008, 08:39:40 PM »

Howdy!

I was looking at another website called www.chinahistoryforum.com, and found this.....

17 Ways of Execution in Ancient China (Note: I would rather be electrocuted than have gone through these punishments. I also wonder where they found people to do these kinds of brutal, torturous executions, that sometimes lasted for days.


1) Skin-Slicing (Bo Pi 剥皮)

This means slicing and cutting away the skin of a person until he dies. When slicing the skin, one starts off from the back spine and cut the skin into half, slowly separating the skin away from the muscle. After slicing the skin, the skins were hanged outside the Judicial Court as a deterent warning. In earlier times, skin-slicing was done after a person die. But later it developed into "live" skin-slicing. (Imagine having your skin pulled apart at the muscle.)

2) Waist Tearing/Chopping (Yao Zhan 腰 斩 )

This involves cutting a person's body into half (top and bottom) by chopping the waist. Because most of the organs are in top body, the prisoner will not die immediately. After chopping, one has to wait for some time before the executed dies.

Emperor Yongle (of Ming dynasty) was said to execute Fang Xiaoru 方孝孺 using waist chopping. It was said that after the chopping, Fang still crawled on the ground and use blood on his hand to write the word "upsurp throne" 12 times before dying.

3. Chariot-tearing (Che Lie 车 裂 )

Also known as "5 horses tearing the body" (五马分尸). Simply tie each rope onto the head, the two hands, and two legs of the prisoner. Then connect 5 ropes to 5 horses or chariots respectively. Allow 5 horses to gallop away in 5 different directions, and thereby tearing a person's body into 6 parts. The famous legalist Lord Shang Yang during was executed by this method during the warring states period.

Chopping away the hands and legs take much effort, let alone tearing them apart. One can feel the great pain undergone during this tearing. (Note: I would think that this would be actually the most painless, since decapitation causes instantaneous death)

4. Five Cutting (Juwu Xing 俱五刑)

This means cutting away the head, feet, hands, ears as well as gorge out the eyes. Normally, only after a person is killed will one cut away the head, hands and feets. After that, cut the body into 3 pieces. (Note: Sounds like what some Narco-South American drug gang would do to someone.)

During Western Han dynasty, after Liu Bang's death, Empress Lu arrested his concubines and execute them by cutting away the head, legs, feet and gorge out their eyes and threw them into pig's pen to feed the pigs. (Note: I wonder who she fed the pigs to? Would you eat an animal that tasted human flesh?)

5. Mincing (Ling Ci 凌 迟 )---The Death of a Thousand cuts.

The earliest practice was to cut and mince a person's body into "body mince" after a person was killed. This was known as "hai3 醢".

Later it developed into "Live" mincing. During the execution, the executioner will slice many cut onto the body till the person dies.

It was said that there were two executioner executing the person. One has to slice from the leg 1,000 times, which means cutting away 1,000 pieces of flesh till the person die.

According to Ming history, the execution of the eunuch Liu Jing 刘谨 took some 3 days before he died. This is one of the execution punishment during Ming and Qing dynasty.

6. Hanging (Yishou 缢 首)

A common practice in China esp. for those who had past contribution to the nation.
E.g. Yuefei

7. Boiling (Peng Zhu 烹 煮)

This involves putting the prisoner in a big pot. The big pot is filled with water and placed onto a stack of woods/charcoals to burn and heat up. As the water boils and heats up, the prisoner is boiled to death. (Note: That would of been torurous.)

8. Castration (Gong Xing 宫 刑 )

This involves cutting away the sexual organ of a man and allow one to bleed to death.

9. Cutting away the legs (Yue Xing 刖 刑 )

This involves cutting the legs. E.g. Sun Bin during Warring States

10. Needling (Cha Zheng 插 针)

Use a needle to poke and pierce the fingers. (Holy fuck!)

11. Live Burial (Huo Mai 活 埋)

Use mostly during war times. Prisoners are buried in the ground and die because they cannot breath.

During war time, prisoners of war were asked to dig the ground. Sometimes, the prisoners of war were killed and then pushed into the ground.

12. Poisoning (Zhen Du 鸩 毒 )

This involves letting the prisoner drink the poisonous wine and die.

13. Impaling (Gun Xing 棍 刑)

This involves using the staff and pierce it through one's mouth or anus. Half way through the piercing, the intestines would have been broken letting the prisoner die.

14. Sawing (Ju Ge 锯 割)

Use the saw and saw a person till death.

15. Break the vertebra (Duan Zhui 断 椎 )

This involves breaking the vertebra. Once the vertebra is broken, the person dies.

16. Lead Injection (Guan Qian 灌 铅 )

Melt the lead till 232 degree celsius, then pour the lead into a person's mouth. Once the lead reaches the stomach, it will solidify and expand. Because this heavy metal exerted a strong downward force on the body, the person dies immediately.

17. Combing and Brushing (Shu Xi 梳 洗)

were torn out till one dies.This is not the combing of hair, but a cruel execution. This involves using metal brush (with sharp pieces) to comb onto the body. As it combs, several pieces of the flesh It was said the inventor of this execution was Zhu Yuanzhang, 1st Emperor of Ming dynasty.
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http://www.chinahistoryforum.com/index.php?showtopic=21872

Be nice to Chinese or else.....

Senor

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Mr Nobody

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #1 on: September 06, 2008, 12:01:31 AM »
These were used in the West, too. The death of a thousand cuts is more middle eastern, the impaling more Eastern European, but yeah.

However, it is interesting that the man "Yang XiaoRu" who was cut in two was such a bad speller, adding the letter p like that into usurp. He could have written it another couple of times before he died, if only he had known that. I bet he would have killed himself if only he had known that.
Just another roadkill on the information superhighway.

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decurso

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #2 on: September 06, 2008, 12:14:04 AM »
 Very interesting! There is actually fascinating museum on torture and execution in San Diego that has some truly twisted devices from different cultures and time periods. Another one in Amsterdam. Well worth of a look for anyone interested in that sort of thing.
« Last Edit: September 06, 2008, 09:12:12 AM by decurso »

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AMonk

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #3 on: September 06, 2008, 12:43:02 AM »
Senor....this Thread should carry a Warning!! sign.  I read it before breakfast.  Put me right off my food aaaaaaaaaa



On a more serious note, these methods are not confined to ancient China.  Sad to say, several of these techniques (as well as sundry others) were "discovered" and used by the Nazis, the Vietcong, and other (more recent) nations/groups which have been cited by Amnesty International. 

Not to mention Torquemada's attempts at "saving the souls" of his apostate peers.

"There is nothing new under the sun".

Moderation....in most things...

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Mr Nobody

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #4 on: September 06, 2008, 03:06:12 AM »
The Tower of London had one, about ten years back. Not sure it's there. I once wrote a scholarly type article, quite long, on tortures through the ages in European history for an historical magazine once.

I quoted in it's entirety a very literate first person account of an inquisition, involving hot lead and drawing and quartering. I think it was in Southern France.

The person's hair was supposed to have turned completely white before he died. Impossible, of course, but interesting reading. Wish I still had that article.
Just another roadkill on the information superhighway.

Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #5 on: September 06, 2008, 04:09:35 AM »
Amonk, the title stands as a warning already  uuuuuuuuuu

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psd4fan

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #6 on: December 01, 2008, 09:01:44 PM »
Why do I have a hungering for Steak and Kidney Pie or Liver n Onions? rrrrrrrrrr

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Foscolo

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #7 on: December 01, 2008, 10:00:09 PM »
I'm such a wuss. I read the first two methods, and decided not to read any more. Stuff like that really creeps me out. I can't watch even fairly mild horror films. How wussy is that?
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AMonk

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #8 on: December 02, 2008, 12:58:47 AM »
NOT wussy.  Sensitive. agagagagag
Moderation....in most things...

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Stil

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #9 on: December 02, 2008, 01:51:14 AM »
NOT wussy.  Sensitive. agagagagag

Now don't be combative Amonk. She's entitled to her opinion.

I support you Foscolo!  uuuuuuuuuu

Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #10 on: December 02, 2008, 03:44:57 AM »
Great!!! Lead injection, that's just impressive. Put's our old boring gibbeting and being hung, drawn and quartered. Maybe if old Jack Ketch had had a Chinese advicer, the Sheriff's Ball at Tyburn would have had the deterring effect it was supposed to have. Those Chinese chaps sure are an inventive lot....dashed fascinating.
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Escaped Lunatic

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #11 on: December 02, 2008, 02:57:22 PM »
Saw a fascinating item on the History Channel a couple of days ago.  A couple of "experts" with too much time on their hands were trying to figure out how Vlad the Impaler supposedly had impaled people live for hours or even days after being fully skewered.
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fox

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #12 on: December 03, 2008, 04:16:28 AM »
live for hours or even days after being fully skewered.


shrimps manage to stay alive for ages too after you skewer them and they are waiting to be bbq'ed.  perhaps people have shrimp like qualities, or shrimps have human qualities.
regard man as a mine rich in gems of inestimable value.

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Escaped Lunatic

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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #13 on: December 03, 2008, 05:18:58 PM »
They had to adjust the taper of the skewer in the computer simulation so that it could finally pass out through the mouth without completely blocking the airway.
 aoaoaoaoao aoaoaoaoao
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Re: Ancient Chinese execution techniques.
« Reply #14 on: December 05, 2008, 02:14:21 AM »
The one that freaks me out is a European invention.  They strip you maked, then hang you between two trees by your ankles.  Out comes the saw, and they gradually cut you in half.  The kicker: since you're upside down, all the blood rushes to your head, so you can't faint.

Given my choice, I'd elect for firing squad.  Kinetic damage that I'd feel for a second is something I can handle.
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