To be fair, that fella likely committed a heinous crime such as believing that the earth was not the center of the solar system, or speaking to a wealthy person
You were allowed to speak to the wealthy as long as you addressed them correctly. Which was the style at the time.
Because if, you know, the picture above.
For context, this is likely the old testament prophet Isaiah, who in certain apocryphal sources died by being sawed in half on the orders of King Manasseh of Judah. The orientation of the saw, and whether Isaiah was magically hiding inside a tree trunk at the time, seem to have been left to the artist’s discretion. I can’t find this particular illumination after a bit of googling, but here are some more examples in this blog post (I have not vetted it and do not vouch for it, but the writer seems to be a professional researcher who identifies as having broken with fundamental Christianity in his youth).
As always, medieval illuminators are not particularly interested in historical accuracy, but rather familiarity with the cultural roles, hence a very European two-person saw and woodcutters in European garb, but Isaiah himself is in “Biblical” robes as they would have understood them. If there was any thought given to lighting, it’s perfectly sensible for it to be emanating from the prophet.
From the little bit of older literature I’ve read, violence is normal. Hitting the wife if she speaks up is just everyday occurrence. Don Quixote hits Sancha a few times. Even the stories of my grandparents were full of getting slapped or hit with a ruler by nuns and pastors in Catholic school.
Unrealistic. They would hang him upside down and go bottom to top.
Not if they wanted to spice stuff up
“Okay, but only if I get to dress as a gnome while we do it”
“Steve you’re a fucking weirdo”
The worst is they didn’t understand lighting. Are their pants glowing from the massive erections they have torturing this man, or is the man a light bulb because where the fuck is his lighting coming from?
The saw is reflecting light from the sun, nothing special. Ignore the inconsistencies of that statement.
Before tv, phones and such, watching someone get sawed in half was probably the best form of entertainment you could have. Other than watching a play or something.
Medieval peasant: “ugh, I’ve seen this one.”
His buddy whos really into the village lore: “No bro you’re thinking of Saw 7, this is Saw 9. It looks dope!” shovels popcorn into mouth
Someone getting sawed in half is basically a high stakes play anyways
High stakes for who? It’s not like the outcome was in doubt, just the time to completion
Not my best comment, I agree, but I’ll make up a fictive situation where neither man in the situation is sure whether death exists.
