Punishment in Aberdeen
Hanging stone
The hanging stone is Infront of the tollbooth , castle street
These cobbles are where convicted criminals were hanged from the 1700s Infront of a crowd .
The last thing they would see is the view down Marschial street , leading to the harbour .
The whipping stone is on the corner of union street and broad street .
This is where criminals were publicly whipped by the local hangman .
Sometimes these people were whipped through the streets of the burgh before being banished . Whipping was only fully abolished in 1948
Scolds bridle / branks
A scolds bridle was mainly used on women . Such as women who gossiped , who spoke back or on those accused of witchcraft . It was fitted In a way that caused pain if they spoke and also caused them humiliation. There is one on display at Aberdeen’s tollbooth museum .
Jougs
Another form of punishment used to humiliate .
A jougs was a iron collar which would be attached to the wall by a chain . The collar would then be fastened round the persons neck . This could be anywhere that was busy ( eg church , mercat cross etc ) meaning that their humiliation would be seen by as many people as possible .
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