Cage, gibbet

Wrought iron gibbet cage used to hold the corpse of an executed felon. The cage shows signs of restoration and repair on the left leg hoops and vertical iron. The upper cage and collar are designed to be unbolted and hinged open. Following public executions the bodies were cut down from the gallows, placed in a cage and hung from wooden gibbets. The spectacle of executed criminals being hung out to rot was intended to be a deterrent to all those considering a life of crime. In the 18th century many pirates were transported to London for their trial and execution at Execution Dock at Wapping. The spectacle of rotting bodies in their 'gibbet tassels' along the banks of the river was a feature of London life until well into the 19th century.