148: Top 3 Ancient Torture Techniques: Forgotten Punishments of the Past
57:01 Share

The iHeartRadio Music Festival was a blast, and Hyundai's EV lineup was there for every moment. In Vegas, Hyundai took VIPs to the Speedway to test drive the 601-horsepower Ioniq 5N. On Friday, the EV Sessions winner was announced, Hyundai's music contest on TikTok. The twist? Their performances were all powered by the all-electric Hyundai Ioniq 5. How cool is that? And after the show, fans got to check out the Hyundai dance floor at House of Music.

Thanks again to Hyundai's amazing EV lineup. Learn more at HyundaiUSA.com or call 562-314-4603. I've been watching a lot of scary movies because it's Halloween. You get it. Tis the season. God, which one did I watch recently that kind of was like really scary? It doesn't matter. But you know what I did put on? I put on Saw. Do you remember Saw based on a true story? Yeah, I remember thinking Jigsaw was like so creepy. And now when I watch him, like he's kind of cute on his little tricycle.

I know, because you called me so cute. You know, a couple of years ago, we did a dark history on ancient torture. What's the correlation here? Well, that alone was like way scarier than Saw. I went back and I looked into my notes for that episode. And like, honestly, we only had so much time, so we didn't get to cover a lot. And it's like, you know, there are a ton of other torture techniques that we didn't even get into. So I was like...

Let's do it, baby. You know, let's do it. Let's continue the conversation about ancient torture because these techniques, they kept me up at night. The torture techniques are creative to say the least. Here we are once again for the Dark History of Ancient Torture Part 2.

Hi friends, how are you today? My name is Bailey Sarian and I'd like to welcome you to my podcast, Dark History. Here, we believe history does not have to be boring. I mean, it might be tragic, sometimes it's happy, but either way, it's our dark history. So before we get into it, don't forget to like and subscribe and let me know what you think. I love hearing from you in the comment section and at the end of the episode, usually we like read some comments, you know, so leave a comment. That's what I'm saying.

Now let's get into it. The other day I heard someone say the phrase death by a thousand cuts and I've heard that phrase before but I thought it I didn't really know what it meant you know it's just like a phrase right well turns out it was actually a real thing and no it's not a bunch of paper cuts which I assume that's what it was because when you think about paper cuts hurt really bad right they're

They're spicy. But death by a thousand cuts was actually tied to an ancient torture practice called flaying. Now, flaying is the act of removing someone's skin. We mentioned flaying in our first ancient torture episode, and I'm sure in a few murder mystery makeup episodes.

If you watch, you know, there's some flaying involved. But the torture method is actually called ling chur. And even though ling chur is tied to flaying, it's actually way worse. Flaying was all about slowly removing someone's skin, which sounds pretty awful. I'm sure we all can agree. Ling chur

was all about torturing someone by hacking off... Oh, really quick disclaimer. It's kind of gory today. We're going to kind of like talk about some like meaty, juicy body parts. Do you know what I'm saying? Just letting you know. With

With that being said, Ling Cher was all about torturing someone by hacking off chunks of flesh all around the body. This practice actually started in ancient China. So Ling Cher started being used around 220 BC. And apparently it was so successful that by the mid 1300s AD, this was the most popular way of executing someone. But it wasn't just for anybody. Ling Cher was reserved for the worst kind of people because...

you'd suffer for like a really long time before actually dying. Like, you wanna talk about torture? This is torture. So it would be for people like traitors who like betrayed their country, high profile murderers, and anyone who crossed Chinese royalty. There are a lot of historical accounts of Lingzhi, but I heard this one story that was like, what?

So let me tell you about it. So this story happens in China in the 1500s. The emperor at the time died in a freak accident and there was nobody in line to take over the throne. So the palace, they were scrambling. So they decided to turn to someone in the emperor's family, his cousin who was 14 years old. His name is Jiajing.

Now, right from the jump, the young, I had to like really try on that. I, you know me, I butcher names all the time. So that was hard. Okay. But he's 14 years old. He's young, right? And right from the jump, this young emperor, he had a lot of pressure on him.

You know, he had no training to become an emperor. He was just like a rich teenager with family connections. So a lot of people thought that he was actually way too young to rule. And they had like, and honestly, they thought like he had no idea what he was doing. Fair and valid. So the emperor decided to send a message to anyone who was doubting him. And they were like, look, if you doubt me, you will be exiled or you will be killed.

You have anything to say? You better say it right now, bitch. You know, he wanted to be clear that he's not going to take shit from anyone. So he ended up torturing and killing hundreds of palace officials who, I don't know, questioned him. Not long after this, the emperor started collecting concubines, aka sex workers. These women were essentially his live-in sex slaves and they weren't even women. They were pretty much girls. Like the emperor had a preference for his concubines to be under the age of 15.

They weren't just there for his sexual pleasure. These girls had another purpose to serve because the emperor had a bizarre plan to live forever. I have a problem.

I absolutely love having new clothes. Do I? Sometimes. I mean, if it looks good, but I really hate having to go shopping. I know I don't like shopping. I really don't. You know, people who like shopping, good for them. But for me, I'm like, I don't want to. I don't want to. So then since I don't like shopping, I'll do it online.

But then I'll buy something because it looks good on the model. I'm like, oh, I love that. And then I forget that I'm not a 5'8 model. So then when I get it, it's like, oh, this looks terrible. You know? Gets me every time.

But that's why I love Stitch Fix. With them, you get your own personal stylist who understands your unique style, your size, and even your budget. Once you give your stylist your details, they can send you personalized pieces. Then you order boxes when you want, so there's like no subscription required. It's like whenever you want.

It's up to you. And along with the clothes, you also get styling tips. And if you love something, you get to keep it. And then if you're like, I don't really like anything else, you send it back. So it's shopping made simple. No more searching the racks for your size. Instead, your clothes can finally be exactly what you want with a personal stylist approval delivered right to your door.

Personal styling for everyone. Get started today at stitchfix.com/darkhistory. That's stitchfix.com/darkhistory. Now the emperor's biggest desire in life was to be immortal.

Yeah, they always want that, huh? And he believed that there was some sort of magic that could help him achieve this. And this magic, he believed, would come from his teenage lovers. Aside from being a predator and being attracted to younger girls, there was like an added bonus to them being so young. So their youth made them pure.

And he believed that purity was a key to immortality. And he's like, "Oh, if only you could bottle it." So in order to be immortal, the emperor creates a potion. Potion that he calls red lead. "Hmm, yummy, sounds good. What's in it?" Well, listen, okay? The emperor kept these young girls around to collect their menstrual blood. Menstruation.

Oh yes, menstruation. That's still right. So he did that and then once he had enough, he'd put it like in a cup. He'd mix it with like a few other ingredients and I guess he would drink it. We don't really know the details about how exactly he was collecting the period blood. And honestly, I was thinking maybe they actually invented the diva cup before the diva cup because how else was he getting it?

huh maybe i don't know and my thought was why did he think that the menstrual blood specifically was going to do this and why did he think to drink it but let him do his thing he genuinely believed that it was working okay i mean every day he was waking up and he's like not dead yet so it must be working sadly these young girls they didn't have a choice once they were chosen they had to service the emperor otherwise they'd face poverty or death so

So it's like, what are you going to choose? Yeah, I'll bleed in a cup. Sure. As the years go on, the emperor kind of starts to lose it. He becomes paranoid, violent, a little jumpy, you know? And in his violent moments, he would pick one of his friends

his girls to have them beaten to death in front of him. So while he was emperor, the emperor allegedly had over 200 of his girls beaten to death. These girls were sick and tired of this psychotic emperor. Right? And plus it's like, when are you next? I might be next. They got to get rid of them. They're miserable. They're trapped.

they needed to take action. Too bad they can't bleed out poison, kill them that way. In 1542, 16 of the emperor's lovers put their heads together to come up with a way out.

They were going to kill the emperor and escape the palace. Great, you know, do it, yeah. So one day they waited until the emperor felt safe in the company of one of his favorite young girls. Then, once his defenses were down and he had been in there for a while, you know, doing stuff, they knocked on the door. They were like, how's it going in here? Do you guys need anything? Snacks?

condom period blah bam they all jumped the Emperor yeah you get him girls you know so they grabbed his arms they grabbed his legs and they hold him down and then one of the girls takes a ribbon from her hair love that she wraps it tight around his throat and she's strangling him and she's like she's dying mother fucker and then after a few minutes I guess one of the girls loses her nerve and

I don't know. She, this dumb girl, maybe she got scared because this is the, all she knew was this life. And she probably just got freaked out, but she loses it and she runs out and she goes to the emperor's wife. Her name was Fong. And she's like screaming at her, like, oh my God, you need to come and see like what's happening. So by this point, the girls think that they've killed the emperor, but before they could escape, Empress Fong

calls the palace guards in. So these guards all come in, they pull the women off of the emperor, and then they arrest the girls. So to their horror, they watch as the guards revive the emperor. They're like,

Damn it. Turns out he wasn't dead. He was just unconscious. They were so close, you know, and he was like in a coma like state for the next few days. Empress Fong knew that her husband would want her to take care of business while he was in a coma. She was like, yeah, he definitely wants me to take over. He said that. He definitely told me I should do that. When I mean, really, do you really think he would want a woman in charge? Come on.

Anywho, but look, she probably had some personal beef with like these women, you know? So, I mean, they were sleeping with her husband. So she saw like an opportunity for revenge. So she takes over and Empress Fang decides to sentence all of the women to death. Even the one who warned her or like let her know. It's kind of fucked up. Well, it's fucked up. So she went with the harshest punishment the law had to offer. Ling Cher.

First, the women were brought to the public part of the city. Then they were stripped naked and forcibly tied to a wooden post, totally exposed. And then the torture began. Now the goal was to get the victims to stay alive for as long as possible so they could experience like the most pain. So one by one, each girl has her flesh hacked off. So they would start cutting at your thigh meat.

your arms, they would cut the boobage, anywhere that there might be like extra flesh, you know? 'Cause they want you to stay alive, they don't wanna kill you. They would slowly work their way up to places like your heart, your face, and like your neck, not the face. Then over the course of the next few days, chunks of their skin and flesh were hacked off piece by piece

Bye. Peace. I mean, just enough for them to like feel horrible pain. The pictures are gross. People's bones and organs are like fully exposed and they're alive. It just looks awful.

I mean, if they didn't die from bleeding out, they would die from infection, okay? And the crowd would apparently be like celebrating as these women cried out in pain. I get it because to them, like they were seeing, these girls were seen as like traitors or whatever, you know? So they're celebrating their slow death. And this was brutal, not only because of like what people physically would go through, but what it represents. I know you're like, well, what does it represent, Bailey? Well, people believed.

that because Ling Cher disfigured and dismembered your physical body, that you would never have a chance at being resurrected and/or finding peace in the afterlife. So victims that were tied to those wooden posts were terrified to die because they really didn't know what would be waiting for them on the other side. As for the Emperor, well,

He lived, you know, and he eventually woke up from his coma. And when Empress Fong told him that, you know, she's like, I took care of business, babe. Don't worry. Well, like I assumed, he was pissed.

He's like, "Who put you in charge, bitch?" You know, he was upset. She had killed his favorite little girl without even asking him first. So a few years later, there was like a fire in the palace. And while palace officials were evacuating, the emperor ordered his men to let Empress Fang burn to death. It's not funny. It's just like, of course he did, you know? 'Cause he,

is psycho. And that's what you get for trying to do something nice. Eventually, governments across the world were forced to acknowledge that Ling Cher was just too brutal and it was outlawed. I was curious about other forms of royal torture because royals really were different. You know, they have the money and power to come up with like any kind of torture device that they wanted.

I feel like a lot of people in power are like either masochist or sadist. And like this kind of just proves that to kind of be true. Yeah. Anywho, but let me tell you, I came across like this other torture technique that just like made me barf a little. Did it? No, but it should have. It's dark and it seems straight out of a movie. Well, not even, I don't even think a movie could come up with this. And the story of its creation takes a turn no one saw coming.

Do you ever realize you're stuck doing the same old thing with your skincare? When a new season comes around, I change my makeup, my clothes, deep condition my hair because everything gets really dry, you know? But I totally forget to check in with my skin and like see what she needs. And right now she is thirsty.

That's why I'm glad I have the sponsor of this episode, Apostrophe. I love Apostrophe. I've been using it for years. It can be totally overwhelming to rebuild your skincare routine from the ground up, but Apostrophe is an online platform that connects you with a dermatology team to help get a treatment that's unique to you and your skin or whatever needs you have. Apostrophe provides access to prescription treatments,

That includes treating whatever you want to help from like acne to breakouts to signs of aging, dark spots, rosacea.

And you know, they make it so convenient. All you have to do is like fill out an online consultation form and describe what your goals for your skin are. Then you like add a couple of selfies and then you're ready to connect to a dermatology provider who is there to help you achieve those goals. It's like a doctor, you know? And they're like, hey, this is what you should use. And then you do it and you're like, oh, wow.

You were right. You know? I mean, you guys know I love to wear makeup, so I need skincare that helps me feel protected, rejuvenated, hydrated, bleep, blah, bloop, all of the things. You know, I want to know that when I give my skin a break, it's getting all the care it needs to stay looking as good as it can. You know? Plus on top of that, any items that they recommend to you will be delivered to your doorstep. So you don't even have to leave the house.

It's great. Right now we have a special deal for our audience. You can get your first visit for only $5 at apostrophe.com slash dark history. When you use our code dark history, that's a savings of $15. And this code is only available to you, our listeners. So to get started, just go to apostrophe.com slash dark history and then click get

get started then use our code dark history at sign up and you'll get your first visit for only five dollars a big thank you to apostrophe for partnering with me throughout the years I appreciate you now let's get back to today's episode shall we so let me tell you about this next little situation because this one truly is something of my nightmares it lives rent-free in my head for sure this

Okay, listen. So in the sixth century,

B.C. Joan, when is 6th century? You don't know either? I should have googled it. Anywho, this guy named Phalaris. He was the ruler of this Greek colony called Acragas. The only thing we know about him is his legacy as a ruler. And every piece of writing we found on this guy tells the same story. He was a terrible person. The end.

Nah, just kidding. So first of all, he was known to be like a tyrant, like a cruel oppressive leader, you know, over his people. He was power obsessed. He didn't play by the rules to get what he wanted and he took what he wanted by violent force, including the throne. Years earlier, before his king era,

Phalaris was hired to build a temple of Zeus near Acragas. And he must have been stoked because the city was like popping off at the time, you know? It was considered like the rich part of ancient Greece. So he's like, what? You want me to build a temple? Sick, you know? So Phalaris was supposed to show up, build a temple, get his payment and get the fuck out of there.

So he shows up with a big group of workers, making it seem like he was taking the job seriously. But Phalaris had no plans to build that temple. He had secretly armed all of his workers so that they could take over the city. So Phalaris and his men violently take over, killing anyone who stood in their way. And Phalaris becomes the ruler of one of the richest parts of Greece. So the people of the city, they weren't

they weren't stoked because they had known about this guy for a while and they knew that he had pretty questionable practices. So there was like rumors going around and some of the rumors that were going around, well one in particular was that this guy was a cannibal. Oh yeah. According to some writers from the second century,

He enjoyed eating sucklings, AKA babies, which is worse, babies or menstruation? Would you rather eat babies or drink period blood? Let me know down below. Okay, so he liked to eat babies, allegedly. Rumors, people were like, oh, I heard that Valeris actually killed and ate his own son. I know.

I know. I wonder what he ate first, the legs, the arms, the head. I don't know. A famous Roman philosopher, Cicero. You get it? Chicago? Okay, no? All right. So Roman philosopher, his name is Cicero. Cicero described Phalaris as someone whose quote, cruelty is notorious beyond that of all others.

You think? Okay. So some people believe that like these accounts of him being a cannibal were actually just a metaphor for what an awful and terrifying leader he was. But it's repeated so many times in ancient texts. It's like, you know, there's gotta be some truth in there. Maybe, I don't know. But Phalaris had quite the reputation in town. So he had a kink for torture. What do you call that? Now, is this masochism or is this sadism?

'cause I always mix up the two. But he liked torture, he got off on it. And he enjoyed executing people in slow, terrible ways. So one writer said, "Philaris was cruel in his designs and even more cruel in his executions. He perpetrated all kinds of outrages on innocent people."

People that worked for him were like walking on eggshells all the time because everyone's afraid like don't piss him off. He will chop your head off and eat your body. Like I don't know. And the only way to gain favor with someone like Valeris was to impress him with something awful. You're like look I brought a dead baby. Here you go. Please.

This is where a man named Perilous walked in. Now, Perilous and Filaris already technically they know each other. I mean, their names are so similar

You know, they kind of like a Cheech and Chong thing going on. But maybe that's why Phalaris didn't like him because their name was so similar. And he's like, there could only be one. So Perilous is apparently the royal sculptor. So he makes like all the pottery and the statues and the stuff that we dig up and we put in museums. He was doing that and he would do this for Phalaris. So he was cool with Phalaris. They knew each other. He was like, hey, love that pot you made me.

And Polaris asked him like for a meeting. He's like, "Hey, I want to meet with you. I have an idea." So Polaris comes in and is like, "My tyrant, would you like another torture device?" And Polaris is, I guess, boner alert, you know? He's like, "What? Yeah." So I guess all of his old torture methods just weren't doing it for him anymore. He was bored.

You know, he wanted to spice it up a little. He's like, I need something new. So Phalaris knew if Perilous was brave enough to offer to make a new torture device that he would take it seriously. Because if Perilous didn't impress him, he knew he could be sentenced to death. So Perilous goes back to his little place and he is like,

He's gotta come up with some real dark shit. Maybe he smokes a little bit of the devil's lettuce. He's like, "I need some inspo." So he knew whatever he made, it had to be unlike anything anyone had ever seen before. And most importantly, it had to be torturous. It had to be brutal. It had to be bad. It had to be the worst of the worst. It had to be awful, creative, dark.

And murderous. So Perilous is done. And then he returns to Phalaris. So Perilous is like, close your eyes. No peeking. Okay, I got a surprise. And then the servants, they roll something in. Phalaris is like, what is it? I can't wait. Oh my God. And then, you know, Polaris is like, okay, open your eyes. And Phalaris, he is shocked.

It's so beautiful. It's a big statue of a bull. You know, he's like, okay, great. I love this bull, but what is it? Perilous explains, okay, he calls it the brazen bull. So brazen means made of bronze and it's not a statue of

"Nay, nay, it's a torture device." He's like, "Okay, I'm drooling, tell me more." But he shows him the backside of the statue because that's where there's a door. Well, okay, look, if we wanna get technical here, there are some people who say the door was on the butt and then some say it was on the bull's side, but there's a door, okay? And Polaris, he opens up the door, he shows him inside and it's hollow.

And it's just like a big empty space. And Filaris is like, what? Like, I don't get it. Like, what? Is this a pinata? Like, I don't understand. So Perilous explains. He's like, listen, here's what you do. You take your victim. You tie them up. And then you force them through the door. And then you shut the door. And then you lock them into this brazen bowl. And then it's like, okay, and? Well.

You light a fire underneath the bull statue and the bronze heats up the whole thing because it's made of bronze, right? So the whole thing heats up, slowly burns and cooks the person alive. So Phalaris is like, okay, love, but not really, not really seeing the vision.

And then in that moment, I guess, Perilous was like, oh, just you wait because I'm not done yet. So Perilous tells him, he's like, look, the best part. Well, it's kind of fun. It's like a like a nice little treat. He tells him that when you close the person inside and you start roasting them alive, naturally, they're gonna scream.

Well, inside the bull there are these complicated tubes. It kind of looks like a tuba. It connects to the bull's mouth. Okay, got it? So when someone is screaming in pain, you know, because they're slowly bringing to death, their screams go through these tubes and it turns into like a roar that comes out of the bull's mouth.

That's art. He's like, wow, you really went off, you know? You made all those pots and plates and stuff, and this is what you make next? Like, that's creativity right there. Do you know what a bowl sounds like? Because I didn't. So YouTube did. So it's kind of like this deep, haunting moo. It's like, wait, no.

i honestly kind of nailed it so when the person is cooking inside these tubes make it sound like it's a bowl yelling that's different right like that's a special kind of up that's dark so for a little moment phalaris is like oh my god love you know he's loving it he is in shock that perilous perfectly nailed what he was looking for he's like

The bull basically takes away their humanity as they die. Perfect. I love that. So legend has it, Valerius's mood, I don't know, takes a turn.

Some say he was disgusted with the device and others say he was actually jealous that he didn't think of this idea himself. Get this. He was ready to see how this bowl worked. So Phalaris goes to Perilous and he's like, "Hey, can you demonstrate like how the bowl noise works?"

Cause like, I don't get it. So Perilous is like, oh my God. Yeah. Like for sure. I'll show you. So he gets inside. He's like, okay, see the horns are here. Watch. Whatever. Valeris shuts the door and Perilous starts to yell to demonstrate the noise. According to legend, Valeris lights a fire underneath the bull and listens to the bull roar.

as Perilous slowly burns to death. I guess he wanted to see it in action, Valeris. He's like, I want a real demonstration, so let me just like do it. In some versions of this story, he pulls Perilous out when he's half cooked and throws him off of a cliff. Scholars say that Valeris used this torture method on his worst enemies. I'm rolling my eyes because it's like, I'm sure. I'm sure he's probably like, that guy.

put them in, you know? But when someone was inside and they were getting cooked and the bowl would like roar, I guess you could hear it like all throughout the city. And Polaris, oh, he loved it. He loved the theater of it all. The performance, it was beautiful. And he loved...

terrifying people. So he's like, this is great. This is beautiful. This is art. So after Valerius dies, they think it's around like 554 BC, the people of the city stormed the temple. So I guess together they picked up the brazen bull, they hauled it outside and they threw it into the ocean.

It's such a bummer that, you know, they couldn't put him in the bowl himself and like torture him, huh? Bummer. But the reason that we know about the brazen bowl is because of the many tales that have been written about it throughout history. And some people don't necessarily blame Valeris for using it. He's a psychopath. If you give a psychopath a cookie, they're probably going to eat it, you know? Instead, people blame Valeris.

perilous for inventing it in the first place. Which is so dumb. Well, I mean, that's actually, that's an interesting take because when you think about it, do you blame the guy who invented it or do you blame the guy who used it? Hmm. Hmm. Hmm. I think we can blame both of them and call them both sick, but you know, it's just, I don't know, whatever. So I guess there like no piece of the actual bowl has ever been found.

And I don't know if any of you guys have ever been to the torture museum. And they have like a replica of the brazen bull. And it's huge. And it's terrifying. But yeah, they actually have never found a piece of like the real thing. So some people actually kind of think it's fake. Moral of the story, people are sick. So brazen bull.

Real or not? I think it is. The second it dips below 70 degrees, I am reaching for my sweaters. It makes it feel like fall. But here's the thing nobody talks about when it comes to those big comfy sweaters. B.O. I live in Southern California. Here, like, it doesn't get that chilly. So, like, I'm wearing a sweater. I'm like, oh my god, fall. But then after a full day of running errands in this cute wool sweater, um, whoo!

them armpits. So you gotta reach for like my deodorant stick at home but like sometimes that doesn't even do the trick it just lingers. But what if you could get a deodorant that just makes you fresh all over? Because maybe you know you know what I'm saying like under here under the boobage you get that sweat I get that sweat. So that's why I use Lume. Listen it's a deodorant that was created by OBGYN.

who noticed that normal BO was being misdiagnosed and mistreated.

specifically when it was coming from down below so she went ahead and fixed the problem by creating a deodorant that is safe to use anywhere on your body not just your pits so lumi's deodorant comes in a bunch of different options so you can choose what works best for you whether you like a traditional deodorant stick they have a spray deodorant or you need some like sweat control lumi offers it

Lume is pH balanced and it's baking soda and paraben free. Plus, it's clinically proven to control odor for up to 72 hours and comes in other great scents like toasted coconut and lavender sage.

So if you want to feel great and smell great all over, try Lume. Lume's starter pack is perfect for new customers. It comes with a solid stick deodorant, cream tube deodorant, two free products of your choice. Like they have these mini body wash, mini body wash, and they also have deodorant wipes. I

I like those. And free shipping. As a special offer to listeners, new customers get 15% off all Lumi products with our exclusive code. And if you combine the 15% off with the already discounted starter pack, that is almost or equals about 40% off their starter pack.

So use code dark history for 15% off your first purchase at LumiDeodorant.com. That's code dark history at LumiDeodorant, L-U-M-E-D-E-O-D-O-R-A-N-T.com. Please support our show and tell them we sent you.

smell fresher, stay drier, and boost your confidence from head to toe with Lume. So the next form of torture is probably the simplest form of torture that we've talked about today. There are no bells, whistles, or bowls, but I think

that's what makes it kind of way worse. In the late 400s BC in ancient Persia, there were two brothers, Cyrus and Artaxerxes. But we're gonna call him

Arta, because it's easier for me, I'm so sorry. So Arta, listen, he was sometimes called the mindful because he was usually like very gentle and thoughtful. I mean, at least in comparison to his brother. Cyrus was the younger brother. So he was like the favorite.

So Cyrus and Arta were both royalty because her father was king of Persia. So their dad dies. They're like, no. But naturally Arta, who's the oldest, was set to take the throne. But his mom was not happy about this. She was like, I want Cyrus, my favorite son, to take over.

but because he was the youngest, that was out of the question. On the day that Arta was set to take the throne, there's an incident. So a priest rushes in and tells Arta that he thinks Cyrus is planning to kill him so that he could be king. So the priest runs in there. He's like, "Arta!"

Cyrus is waiting for you like in the other room and when you walk in there he's gonna jump you. This priest, he knew Cyrus really well and he's a priest so Arta is like you know I believe you. So Arta sends guards to find Cyrus. So the guards go looking and they find him in the other room exactly where the priest said he would be. So it's not a great look but also he's like hey priest

Good job. You know? But Arta is spooked. He's like, my brother's trying to freaking kill me. So he decides to have his brother executed. I mean, look, even if Cyrus wasn't going to kill him that day, he probably would try to someday. So just, you know,

Get rid of him. So Arta is set on executing him. But before he could, his mom rushes in and she's panicking. She pleads with Arta. She's like, please don't kill Cyrus. You know, he's my baby boy. I love him, whatever. So he's like, fine, mom. And he listens. So he's like, look, I won't kill him. I'll just banish him.

You happy with that, mom? She's like, okay, yeah. So Cyrus gets banished. Great. Things are great. Things are fine. King Arta is ruling. The empire is at peace. But then Cyrus comes back around.

Now, Cyrus, while he was banished, he had a lot of time to think about some things. What else are you going to do when you're banished, you know? But Cyrus couldn't stop thinking about what Arta had done to him. I mean, there wasn't any evidence that he was going to kill Arta. It was just a rumor from a priest. And priests are known to lie.

So he was pissed. So a couple of years go by, he's thinking, he's like, "F my brother." You know, he tells himself like, "You know what? I'm gonna go back and I'm going to take the throne. I'm gonna do whatever it takes

to have the throne and I don't even care if I die trying. At this time he was living in Greece. Now Greece had fought Persia decades before so there was like some beef between the two countries. So it's not hard for Cyrus to find people and like build up an army that's ready to fight the Persians. He's like hey aren't you still mad at Persia? Me too join my army. So he builds up his own army and

they decide to invade Persia. Him and his army, they destroy anyone and everything that's like in their way. And he has one goal to get to the palace and kill his brother. Now the journey from like Greece to Persia is long. So, you know, word gets, gets back to Arta that Cyrus is on his way to kill him. So Cyrus is like, all right, you know,

Okay, well, I gotta be ready to fight. Finally, Cyrus reaches the front of the palace. And you know who's there waiting for him? Arta. And the two of them just go at it. They're on horseback, throwing spears at each other. I mean, it's wild. So they both end up wounding each other. And apparently Cyrus gets hit and his horse freaks out, starts running around.

all crazy. Cyrus is stuck on the horse so he's just getting like tossed around like a salad. So a soldier who works for Arta sees Cyrus and he doesn't know that Cyrus is Arta's brother. So the soldier is like I just need to protect my king.

So the soldier stabs Cyrus in the head with a spear. So Cyrus falls off the horse, he bleeds out, and then he dies. Now Cyrus's death ends the battle and the whole invasion. I know what you're thinking. You're like, Bailey, what? That's not torture. That's just a spear in the head. And you're right.

Because, plot twist, Cyrus isn't the one who gets tortured. Oh, nay nay. It's his killer. So Arta finds the soldier who killed Cyrus. His name was Mithridates. He's just like a regular soldier, you know, no biggie. And I guess this is like a very big problem for Arta. You see, this random soldier killing his brother does not...

make the king look strong. It makes him look weak. Art is like, I'm the one who should have killed him. Not you. Who the fuck are you? You know, he's like really upset about this. So the king strikes up a deal with this guy. He's like, look, I'll give you a bunch of jewels and some treasure. If you just tell people that I killed him and not you. I mean, he doesn't want people to know like what really happened because it will make him look weak.

week after the battle there's a banquet and mithridates shows up all decked out he's wearing like all his jewels and stuff he's like look towards the end of the banquet you know someone goes up to mithridates and was like oh my god like you look so good like how did you get so rich i just saw you the other day like you you were just like sweeping you know like what are you

What? What happened? So Mithridates is like, "Oh, wouldn't you like to know?" He's bragging, whatever. He's being annoying. You know those people when you ask them something and they do that, they're being vague or giving you an answer with a question and you're like, "Yeah, I would like to know. That's why I asked." You're just like, "Just tell me. That's annoying."

So he was doing that. He was being that bitch. So then in front of like the whole party, after a few like goblets too many, Mithridates, he's like, he's probably like drunk, you know? He's like, okay, okay. I'm just gonna say it. I did it. I killed Cyrus and the king paid me to keep quiet. And then, so he says this loudly and everybody hears and everyone was like, oh, you know, oh.

So he says this drunk, stupid, being sloppy. And even though he just spilled like literally the hottest tea ever, unfortunately, he also insulted the king in front of everyone. And at the banquet, there were some high up advisors and also his mommy. He looked bad. The king looked bad. I guess mom is pissed off because she like found, she just found out who really killed her favorite son. So she tells Arda like, look, how,

however you punish this guy, make it harsh. So the king arrests Mithridates.

and he sentences him to death, which doesn't make sense. Like he helped you out, but whatever. And of course, like it couldn't be something simple, like, I don't know, beheading, you know, no biggie. He instead sentences him to something called scaphism. Now this is where it gets a little nasty. Apparently death by scaphism is also called the boats. I know.

At first I was like the boats is this like a cute little boat ride to the afterlife? Like do they put your dead body in a boat and like send you down the river? You know because that's kind of cute but no. Okay scaphism is where someone would build a wooden box around your torso

I don't know, 'cause based off the pictures, it looks like it's around your whole body and then your arms, your head and your legs are sticking out. So it's like you're a turtle and it's your turtle shell. And all around you is this wooden box. And you're like, you can't move. You're just locked in here, okay? So Mithridates is pointing to this wooden shell and then floated in the water on his back. And he's looking directly at the sun

every day. He can't move, he can't cover his eyes, nothing, right? He's force-fed a bunch of food. It's like, sure, you can refuse to eat it, but if you refuse to eat it, some bozos swim out and like stab you in the eyes. So next, they would pour a mixture of milk and honey all over him.

And then they would also like get in those little holes and then like pour it inside the wooden shell that he's trapped in. At first you're like, ooh, cute, like slippery. But really he's just sitting in the sun full of food covered in milk and honey. It's like, okay, where's this going? But then you think about it, bugs. Bugs start appearing

and they are loving this. They're like, "Ooh, food! Delicious!" And they start feasting. Apparently, bugs would cover the body so fast that you couldn't even see this guy's face anymore. So his eyes are completely covered by bugs eating the milk and honey and chewing into his face. Then the bugs, they start eating the parts of his body trapped inside the boat. You're like, "Well, that sucks."

I know, but we're not done because listen, remember all the food that they were forced to eat? Well, it's gotta come out, you know? So guess what? Yep. They purposely fed him food that would give him major diarrhea.

So he starts pooping himself inside this wooden shell. And he's just filling this little shell with diarrhea. And that causes the boat to smell, you know, hot sun, diarrhea, bugs, milk and honey. It's just like, oh, ugh.

And then your arms and your legs are stuck. So it's like, think of bugs like crawling all over you and you can't like itch it or swat it away. And then you have diarrhea all over you. Yeah, that's torture. And then like, you know, more bugs show up because they love diarrhea. They're like, this is great. Bugs are just like...

There's a lot going on. What kind of bugs? Well, if you must know, worms, beetles, bugs that love poop, bugs. And for like a little while, these bugs just live in the poop. And they're like, poop. Sorry. Poop. And this whole thing isn't just gross and uncomfortable. It's going to kill you.

Because after a while, your poop isn't enough for these bugs. So they start just like going to the source, a.k.a. your butthole. So these worms, they start crawling all inside you and they start eating you until you die.

And this method of torture can last for days. Now, allegedly, Mithridates, it took him like 17 days to die. Like, who thought of this? Especially the diarrhea part. So look, if you were going to be tortured to death, which one would you choose? That's a good question. Let me think about this. I don't want to do the bull because that just sounds like awful and like...

But then the boat with the diarrhea. And then the flaying. I can't think of an answer, actually. But let me know what you choose. Baby or menstruable?

Have you ever traveled to another country and noticed their toilet situation is totally different from the United States? Especially in Europe. They have bidets everywhere. Let me tell you, one time I went to Japan, this was many, many moons ago, and they had these bidets everywhere. Like, it was a magical moment. I was hesitant to try them at first, but then I did, and my life was forever changed.

Or my butt was, depending on who we ask, you know? So then when I got back home from my trip, I was super bummed because I was like, now I gotta go back to like toilet paper? It doesn't make sense. How come they have it figured out over there and we don't? And it seems like the United States has never really embraced the bidet until they met Tushy.

Let me tell you about Tushy. Tushy is a bidet that easily attaches to your toilet and is designed to remove 99% of bacteria for a cleaner, gentler experience than wiping alone.

Oh look, don't be afraid of it. Trust me, you are going to love it because it makes you feel extra clean and you'll use less toilet paper. And if you've lived through 2020, you know how important that could be. Oh, I love it. It's incredible, you guys. I don't know why everyone's so afraid of. Like if you use it, you feel so much cleaner. Like toilet paper makes no sense. And even though I was like, I've got an amazing crew ready to help. Guess what? You don't need them. Sorry guys.

I know you got dressed up for this and you look fabulous, but we don't need you after all. Plus, I don't trust you with my toilet. Tushy makes installation easy. It takes less than 10 minutes and doesn't need any additional plumbing or electricity. Tushy is beginner friendly and their design fits easily into any bathroom design. Tushy also makes sure that all of their knobs are naturally antimicrobial and protect against bacteria,

gross well tushy is um keeping you clean it's helping to make sure it stays clean too best of all every hello tushy bidet comes with a 30-day hassle-free return and a 12-month warranty listen listen if you take any advice from me this should be it get a bidet it's time to finally feel like shower fresh okay and join the two million butts

who already made the switch to Hello Tushy Bidet. For a limited time, our listeners get 10% off their first bidet order when you use code DARKHISTORY at checkout. That's 10% off your first bidet order at hellotushy.com with promo code DARKHISTORY. Stop being afraid. Just sit, relax, and enjoy it, okay? Jeez. ♪

Now I don't know about you, but I feel like I just watched three horror movies in a row. Or listened to three horror movies in a row. It's hard to believe that these ancient torture techniques aren't just something from like a movie, right? All three of the torture methods we talked about today were real and they happened to real people. Diarrhea boat, real. Bull, real. Filet mignon, real.

Now, watching the torture was actually a form of entertainment to people. I don't blame them. There wasn't much to do back then. I think the reason that it's not discussed in textbooks is because one, it's shameful, and two, it probably gives people ideas. But I think we can all agree that this is fucked up. And that's what we're all about here at Dark History.

Anyway, today's episode was wild. I know it's hard to only pick three. We can go on and on and on and on about torture techniques. There's so many. It's never ending. These people were fucked up. These people were gross. I thought we were gross nowadays, you know? No, I mean, yes, we are. But like, oh,

That's a different, that's different. That's different. Okay, bear with me with this transition. But speaking of gross, have you ever gotten hair in your food at a restaurant? You know, after today's episode, it's really not that gross. I'll take it. I'll still eat it. It's fine. Have you ever gotten sick after eating out? Yeah, again, not that bad after today's episode, huh?

Well, look, it makes you realize how much trust we put in people making our food, you know? We just assume that they're being safe and no one wants us to be sick with the food that they made us. But back in the 1920s, there was a cook named Mary Mallon who spread a deadly disease to dozens of people. And some think she did it on purpose.

I like this episode. Okay, listen. Next episode, we'll be talking about the deadliest cook in American history. Now, was she a menace or a victim herself?

Oh, I can't wait to hear your guys' hot takes because it kind of gets you thinking, this girl. It really will. It'll get you thinking. And you know what inspired me to do this episode of Dark History? I was getting sick over and over and over again and I kept going back to my doctor. And my doctor was like, "Oh my god, I'm gonna start calling you Typhoid Mary."

And I was like, Typhoid Mary? Who's that? And now we have an episode of Dark History. So I have to shout out my doctor for calling me Typhoid Mary.

Thanks, Doc. So be sure to join us next time for the Dark History of Typhoid Mary. By the way, we are dark next week. I mean, there won't be an upload, but we're back on November 6th. I'm going to have to take a long hot shower after today's episode. Thank you for hanging out with me. Did you know you can join me over on my YouTube where you can actually watch these episodes on Thursday after the podcast airs? Yes.

And while you're there, you can also catch my murder, mystery, and makeup. And don't forget to subscribe because I'm here for you with new content all the time. I'd love to hear your guys' reactions to today's story, so make sure to leave a comment down below so I can see what you guys are saying. I can't wait to read this comment section. I'm sure it'll be great.

And your comment might even be featured in a future episode. Now let's read a couple of comments that you guys have left me. AlexBose305 left us a comment saying, Perfect timing for my lunch break, lol. Eating my rolled tacos in my car and watching Dark History. Well, Alex, I hope you aren't eating lunch while listening to this episode. If you are, I'm sorry.

Don't hate me. What kind of tacos are you eating? Oh, rolled tacos. What kind of meat? And what do you put on your taco? What kind of car? What's your social security? Personal last name? Date of birth? Address? Mother's maiden name? First...

Just let me know. Thanks for watching, I appreciate you. I hope you had a good lunch. Jasmine Parnell7697 left me a comment saying, "I love watching your channel. My husband watches your channel when he's away from home to go to sleep because it makes him miss home a little bit less." Jasmine, thank you so much for your comment. That is very sweet. Tell your husband hi. Thank you. Thank you for watching. Does he fall asleep when he's watching?

I hear I put a lot of people to sleep. Now I'm not sure if that's a compliment or a bad thing. I'll take it. I'll take it. Whatever. You know, that's okay. That's fine. Anywho, thank you for watching. I appreciate you and love ya bitch. I don't know. Thank you. Lisa Mercer 8651 left us an episode suggestion saying, "The dark history of Google. How does Google know everything?"

Lisa, Lisa, Lisa, Lisa, Lisa. This is a great idea. It's kind of funny that I would have like, I would have to Google the history of Google. So I'm not sure how that would work. I will look into this though because that's not a bad idea. I think it would make for an interesting episode because like Google started off as one thing and now where it is today is completely different than what they originally stood for. And that could make a really interesting episode. Yeah.

You know, I'm pissing off so many people here at Dark History, I'm gonna get murdered, aren't I?

Anywho, love you guys for watching. I also appreciate you for commenting and engaging. And don't forget to leave a comment because maybe you'll be featured in a future episode. And hey, if you don't know, Dark History is an Audioboom original. A special thank you to our expert, Dr. Nancy Park, Professor of History, California State University, East Bay. And I'm your host, Bailey Sarian.

I hope you have a good day. You make good choices. Be safe out there. And I'll be talking to you guys later. Goodbye.