Dimensions
111 x 179 x 30mm
An Encyclopedia Of Methods Of Judicial Execution
Man learned to tie knots - and so was able to create a hangman's noose; means of making fire were discovered - and heretics were burned at the stake; the wheel was invented - and felons were broken on it; blunt iron became sharpened steel - so decapitation by axe and sword became possible. And even if such knowledge or facilities were not available, local resources always existed with which to dispose of unwanted members of society - they were fed to crocodiles, trampled under elephants' feet, thrown over cliffs, submerged in rivers . . . It is hardly surprising, therefore, that so many methods of execution have evolved worldwide, all of them devoted to one basic requirement, that of depriving the offender of his or her life.
Before the public can come to any decision on question of the justification for the judicial taking of human life, and thereby influence their governments, it is essential that all the facts of the different methods be known. To that end, this comprehensive account of the ultimate penalty, contributes to that knowledge, while urging at the same time that the wrongs suffered by the victims of crime should always be borne in mind - to the same degree.
