Having time traveled forward from the Middle Ages, I was naturally curious to see how the modern…read moreworld remembers the many ingenious ways my ancestors attempted to ruin one another's afternoons. I expected a small collection of rusty devices and perhaps a badly painted mannequin. Instead, I found the Medieval Torture Museum in Chicago to be surprisingly expansive, covering thousands of square feet with more than 100 devices, scenes, and exhibits.
The museum contains an impressive number of props, torture instruments, wax figures, and dummies arranged into realistic scenes. Some displays are interactive, allowing visitors to examine or carefully operate certain devices, and there are plenty of photo opportunities throughout. The exhibits can be graphic, but I wouldn't describe them as excessively over the top. They are gruesome enough to make you appreciate modern dentistry, hospitals, and the general invention of human rights.
We found the subject matter fascinating, so we spent about two hours exploring the museum. We read all of the informational plaques, examined the displays, and took plenty of pictures. The audio guide adds additional historical context, and the museum also offers a ghost-hunting app, which is a wonderfully strange feature to use while standing beside an iron maiden.
As a man who personally witnessed several of these devices in their original working condition, I can confirm that the museum's recreations are quite accurate. I even recognized one exhibit as the exact machine used to settle a dispute between two knights over a moderately attractive turnip.
The museum is dark, educational, interactive, and thoroughly fascinating. It is not for everyone, especially those who are sensitive to graphic depictions of violence, but anyone interested in medieval history, true crime, horror, or the darker side of human behavior should find plenty to enjoy.
I arrived from the Middle Ages expecting to feel nostalgic. Instead, I left deeply grateful for modern plumbing, courtroom procedures, and the fact that disagreements are no longer settled by placing someone inside a metal chair covered in spikes.
