Breaking Wheel

The breaking wheel is a piece of torture equipment and execution equipment upon which a condemned individual is bound and his or her body broken. It consists of a large spoked wheel. It is to the spokes that the condemned individual is lashed and it is against them that his or her bones are shattered with the use of a cudgel or hammer. The wheel may be mounted so as to turn readily and afford a better spectacle to an audience. The condemned individual may be left bound to the wheel to die in excruciating pain and with infinite slowness or, more mercifully, may be bludgeoned to death straight away. The body of the condemned individual, whether dead or still alive, is often offered up to the crows, with the wheel either remaining in place or being raised up to better afford a warning to all. The limbs of the condemend individual, once their bones are sufficiently pulverised, may be woven between the spokes to form a macabre tapestry.