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DC Thomson ,Punishment Cards, The Iron Flute

It’s a medieval torture device that was used – once upon a more primitive time – for publicly shaming bad musicians and other disturbers of the peace.

 

The contraption, which is essentially a heavy iron flute – although you probably wouldn’t want to play it – was shackled to the musician’s neck.

 

The musician’s fingers were then clamped to the keys, to give the impression they were playing the instrument.

 

Finally, just to further their humiliation, they were forced to wear the flute while being paraded around town, so the public could throw rotten food and vegetables at them

 

DC Thomson is a media company based in Dundee, Scotland. Founded by David Couper Thomson in 1905, it is best known for publishing The Courier, The Evening Telegraph and The Sunday Post newspapers, and the comics Oor Wullie, The Broons, The Beano, The Dandy and Commando. It also owns the Aberdeen Journals Group which publishes the Press and Journal. The company owns several websites, including Findmypast, and owned the now defunct social media site Friends Reunited

 

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Uploaded on July 29, 2025
Taken on July 29, 2025