User Rating:
Category:
Not right?
Results 1-4of 4 Reviews
by books
Houston, Texas
July 29, 2005
The museum is four stories; follow the yellow arrows to get through. Many exhibits have English explanation.
Admission EUR3.50. Open April-Oct. 9:30am-6pm. More info at Medieval Crime and Punishment Museum.
From journal Romantic Road Gem
by becks
Mexico City, Mexico
April 9, 2002
The Medieval Crime Museum is a pretty serious museum and apparently the only law museum in Europe. That said many people refer to it as the Torture Museum as it has a large display of torture devices and these invariably get more attention than the old juridical scripts.
The museum is housed in a building dating from 1395 although it was redone in 1718 as the only building in Rothenburg in the Baroque style. Although it is spread out over four floors many people seem to rush through in half an hour focusing on the aforementioned torture instruments.
Personally I found the old documents and illustrated legal guides of even more interest and to study them to any extend you should set aside at least an hour and a half to two hours. All displays are explained in both English and German. Of particular interest is the illustrated Sachsenspiegel, the oldest and most influential German code of law of the middle ages. It was compiled from 1220 to 1235 and records the customary law of the Saxons including court proceedings, property transfers, punishments, due dates and liability. Also of interest are the woodcuts explaining penalties of shame and honor, including facemasks of shame, neck violins for feuding people and the baker’s baptism.
The highlight for many is the display with torture and punishment instruments including leg irons, stocks, spiked-chairs, finger screws, chastity belts and neck-violins. There is also a "drunk barrel" that was to be worn by drunkards and an iron maiden for women of ill repute. Execution seems to have been a particular favorite of medieval justice and torture was thrown in for good measure too. Even on the way to the gallows hot pincers could be applied to the body of the condemned. Degrading public punishments such as being tied up with a facemask of a pig or dragon or in neck violins for quarrelsome people also seem to have played an important role in keeping the peace and order in medieval society.
The museum can get very busy, especially with school groups although they tend to rush through at great speed except for the gruesome exhibits. I would strongly recommend getting there as close as possible to opening time.
Outside the museum is a set of stocks with queues of patrons lining up to have their photos taken. You can access these stocks at all times so you can come back outside museum hours to take a picture without having to jostle for position. Also outside is a baker’s baptism, a cage used to dunk bakers into the river if they were found to bake underweight bread. Similar systems for bakers were used in many countries and is the origin of a baker’s dozen being 13, just to be safe.
Entrance is Euro 3,20. The museum is open daily but during November, January to March only in the afternoon.
From journal Romantik medieval Rothenburg ob der Tauber
by xine
Santa Monica, California
October 22, 2000
Admission is 4DM for students; 6DM for adults.
From journal Rothenburg and the Romantic Road
by jwagner
Des Moines, Iowa, Afghanistan
August 25, 2000
From journal Rothenberg: a medieval city