Dictionary

Judas cradle en · NOUN

Etymology

Derives its name from the biblical figure of Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus Christ. It was believed that the torture device was named after Judas as a means of punishing those who were deemed to have betrayed their fellow man.

Meanings

1. A purported torture device invented in Spain in the 16th century by the Spanish Inquisition by which the suspended victim’s orifice, usually the anus, was slowly impaled on and stretched by the pyramidal tip of the seat.

Forms

Synonyms

Judas chair

Translations (6)

pt berço-de-judas (device of torture) · it culla di Giuda (device of torture) · de Judaswiege (device of torture) · es cuna de Judas (device of torture) · fr berceau de Judas (device of torture) · pt berço de Judas (device of torture)