The
prisoner would be
stripped of his
clothing and his hands would be tied to a
post. A
flagrum would be used with full
force across the
back,
shoulders and
legs. Initially, the
leather thongs would only cut the skin, but as the whipping continued, the cuts would deepen until
arteries in the muscle tissue were damaged and the
prisoner would literally leak
blood. The small
lead balls at the ends of the
thongs would produce deep
contusions which were
ripped open by further lashes.
When the supervising officer decided that the prisoner was almost dead, the beating would end. By this time, the flesh of the prisoner's shoulders and back would be hanging in strips and generally look like ground beef.