It caught my eye as I approached an intersection and happened to glance at the opposite side of the road. And there they were - stocks, standing by the side of the road in a small patch of grass and surrounded by shrubs.
I wasn't in a theme park, or driving through a historical site. Why would stocks be displayed on a highway? To deter speeders? Was it a Hallowe'en decoration? How long had they been standing there?
As it happened, before setting out that morning I had glanced at a few blogs, and had seen a picture of a bare-bottomed young lady, restrained in stocks and awaiting her punishment. This was truly a happy coincidence.
I took careful note of the name of the next village I passed through and resolved to take a closer look on my way back. The anticipation made the long drive home after a tiring day something to look forward to.
The sun was low on the horizon when I passed through the village that was my landmark, and I started watching the roadside carefully. Finally, I spotted the stocks again, and slowed slightly. There was a sign or plaque nearby, presumably a historical marker of some sort. Should I stop or carry on?
A small voice told me to seize the moment. I pulled off the road, turned around and headed back. The stocks were quite tall, made of wood and fastened together with rusted metal hinges and a large padlock. The sign explained that this was the former site of a jail, and that both stocks and a pillory had been set up next to it many years ago. I didn't know what a pillory was, but found this picture, and it seems that there isn't much difference, except in height.
There's also a dual version. Twice the fun, I suppose. Or more efficient.
Travelling is so much fun.
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6 comments:
Maybe they could turn it into more of a tourist attraction by offering to put people into the stocks. LOL
FD
I often wondered, as a child, if anyone ever volunteered for the stocks--and if they did whether they would get more punishment or less...?
Oh, well spotted Hermione. I would have been the same and stopped to take a closer peek.
Thanks for sharing.
Love.
Ronnie
xx
Stocks and pillories.
As there seems to be some confusion about what pillories are (unless I read your post wrong), I thought that I would take this opportunity to be totally insufferable and explain.
Pillory - All the illustrations in your post are pillories. A device designed to immobilize the victim or guilty party in a standing position. Usually encircling the neck and wrists but sometimes by the wrists alone.
Stocks - A device to restrain the victim or guilty party by the ankles in a seated position.
Prefectdt
We have an occasional Midevil folk fair and along with jousting and sword fights, trubadors and good food are volunteers for the pilory. Gosh Hermione did you see Robin and Little John and Friar Tuck or perhaps the evil Sheriff of Notingham? I wish I new more about red bums when I was into heros in-the-days-of-youre.
Hugs, fab
FD - That would be quite an interesting display. You'd probably have people driving into the ditch!
John - I never thought of volunteering, but I suppose it beats execution.
Ronnie - I wonder how many other people have stopped to take a closer look.
Prefectdt - Thank you for the explanation. I got these pictures from the same source on the internet, and they were labelled as I indicated, so not many of us know the difference.
Fab - No, not one merry man in sight! Perhaps they were off robbing the rich. The medieval fair sounds like a lot of fun.
Hugs,
Hermione
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