Face Harness Head Cage

Hundreds of years ago, especially during the Middle Ages, grisly torture techniques were the norm. If you committed a serious crime, or someone believed you were withholding important information, undergoing some form of torture was inevitable.

One torture device that was used in various capacities throughout the years was the facial harness, better known as the "head cage." People held captive in prisons or dungeons would be forced to wear the head cage, which would restrict neck movement and lock the head in place for other methods of torture to be performed. The victim's arms and legs would typically be restrained as well, so escaping or defending yourself was simply not an option. Eye gouging or branding with white hot prongs were a common theme in situations like this.

Some of these cages featured tongue-pieces fitted with spikes or thorny wheels called rowels that would be shoved into the mouths of captives. Aside from the obvious wounds that some of these mechanisms inflicted, the cages also muffled screams and made it impossible to communicate effectively. Also referred to as the "branks" or "scold's bridle," it is believed to have been conceptualized in 16th century Scotland and passed on to England, eventually reaching the Americas.

The branks were often seen with a chain attached that could be used to immobilize the wearer in a public place. Residences in Cheshire even had a hook on the wall by the fireplace that the town jail-keeper could link the community branks to in the event a man's wife was being uncooperative or bothersome; women could essentially be held captive in their own homes. Sometimes, a bell on a spring was hooked to the branks to indicate that the wearer was in the area and serve as a form of embarrassment. It was also assumed that the branks would stop witches from casting magic spells since it would not allow them to chant.

Medieval Europeans were more likely to use the head cage as a torture device. However, once it reached North and South America, it was used as a form of humiliation.

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