Brutal Ancient Execution Method Proves People Can Be Eaten Alive by Insects

We all are aware of the disturbing fact that after we die at least parts of our body will likely be eaten and serve as prime dinner for some hungry insects. Yes, it’s definitely creepy, but, heck, it’s the circle of life people. What we have not been taught to expect is insects eating us while we are still alive. I’ve certainly never been afraid I might be eaten alive by insects. I didn’t even think it was possible. Never say never, though, because the ancient Persians cleverly came up with one of the worst execution methods I’ve ever heard of, called scaphism. It literally involves being eaten alive by insects.

What I will tell you next is not for the faint of heart and weak of stomach. You have been warned. So, how can a human get eaten alive by insects? Scaphism, also referred to as “the boats” is possibly one of the most dark and disgusting ways of killing someone. The Greeks described scaphism, and were generally the ones intended to be the Persians’ victims of the gruesome practice. Scaphism works like this: the victim was first tied between two upside down canoes or hollowed out tree trunks, leaving only their head and legs protruding from both ends. This sealed the trunk of their body inside the wooden box; think of an oval coffin but with the head and legs sticking out of each end.  So far this doesn’t sound too bad, right? Well, it gets much much worse. Proceed reading with caution…

The victim is then force-fed milk and honey (doesn’t sound so bad, yet) until they are so full they are ready to pop, and all that delicious food is about to erupt from the person’s nether regions. They would also slather honey on any sensitive areas of the body in order to attract the insects. At this point, the executioners job is basically done and he either leaves the victim floating in a stagnant pond rife with hungry insects or just baking out in the sun. This is when the real magic happens. Once the inevitable happens, and all that milk and honey come out, usually in large amounts, the victim was then stuck swimming in their own excrement. Insects smell this and come running, breeding and feeding on the victim’s flesh while they are still very much alive. The insects burrowing inside their skin then begins to disrupt blood flow, which is when gangrene sets in.

The poor victim can’t even count on starving to death or by dehydration because they are force fed again every day, giving him plenty of nutrients to stay good and alive throughout the ordeal. Death would come very slowly, with delirium being the first thing to set in after a couple days of this torture. The victim would eventually die from septic shock, after having to experience the agony of being eaten by insects from the inside out. Sounds fun, right!

Do you think there are other ways a person could die from being eaten alive by bugs? Did you make it all the way through the post without gagging? What do you think it would feel like to go through that particular execution method?