But the goal wasn’t to inflict pain, but rather to test, hence the term “ ordeal by water.” The Salem Witch trials were an infamous time in early American colonial history, and came complete with its own form of torture. The inhumane practice known as dunking was used often against those accused of being witches. Now we know where the phrase “water on the brain” comes from. It is even said that, after a long enough duration, the water starts to penetrate the skin. The torture is as psychological as it is physical, as the victim starts to see every drop coming, with the feeling magnified after every drip. Sounds harmless, right? Well, it doesn’t seem so harmless when the victim is strapped for days at a time, with that drip of water never stopping. Then, a simple drop of water would proceed to drip on the victim’s forehead. The way the process works is to strap someone by their head and body, and on their back. And in that lawyer mind of his, the first thing he thought of was how this could be used on a human to torture a confession out of them. Marsili created the torture after witnessing a constant drip of water impacting a stone. In actuality, the origins of its name can be traced back to magician Harry Houdini’s stunt, the “Chinese Water Torture Cell.” In this stunt, Houdini entered a tank filled with water, upside down and bound, and had to make an escape before he died.Īs a form of torture, this practice came about in 15th century Italy, by a lawyer (of course it would be a lawyer) named Hippolytus de Marsili. “Chinese water torture” is actually something of a misnomer, since the practice actually has nothing to do with China. This process is repeated until the victim completely submits. This momentary relief is just a mirage, meant to break them psychologically, as they go right back to drowning again. The worst part though, is the in-between moments of alleviation for the victim, when the water stops pouring. This gives the poor victim the unpleasant sensation of being underwater and drowning ever so slowly. When they are nice and secure, the torturer proceeds to pour water directly onto the face, in intervals. Afterwards, a cloth is placed over their eyes, nose and mouth.
Waterboarding involves strapping somebody to a table on their back, causing them to become immobile. Far too many, in fact, dismissed it as a possible form of torture by scoffing, “it’s just water.” We heard the term so much in recent years, yet many never really knew what it entailed. Strongly associated with the Bush and Cheney years, waterboarding has actually been around since 16th century Europe.
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