Hangmen's Greatest Fear Was Decapitation

Deseret News (Salt Lake City) › February 07, 2008

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Summary

Question: Over the centuries, prisoners condemned to be hanged by the neck have had plenty to worry about. Have the hangmen/ executioners had anything to worry about?

Answer: Old-fashioned "short drop" executions caused death by strangulation as the rope pressed on the windpipe and arteries to the brain, a 10-second demise, says New Scientist magazine.

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Extract

Hangmen's Greatest Fear Was Decapitation

Alas, that was only if the noose was correctly applied. Witnesses of public hangings often reported victims "dancing" in pain at the end of the rope, struggling violently for ...

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