The Iron Maiden

Oh what a horrifying odor that falls upon us. Surely the years of agony trapped within these walls has stained the air with a burning, rotting stench. Dry, crusty blood clings to every surface. How frightening that we discover what looks like fresh blood in the corner of the room. When you are done gasping, you may notice that the wall behind us has closed with no obvious ways to open it back up again. There is a door however. Let's get out of here quickly.

The Iron Maiden was a torture in which a human would be forced inside. When the door closed the victim would be crushed to death by tens of spikes within its walls.

Designed to make execution more humane, the guillotine quickly became a symbol of tyranny during the French Revolution.

Victims were placed on a bench, face down, and their necks positioned between the poles.

The actual beheading was very quick, taking less than half a second from blade drop to the victim's head rolling into the waiting basket.

However, debate rages over whether the quickness of the execution was humane or not, as many doctors put forward the notion that it could take up to 30 seconds before the victim lost consciousness.

That piece of gruesome news would not have worried the crowd, which continually called for aristocratic and royalist blood to be spilt.

An estimated 40,000 people traveled on the tumbrels through Paris to die under Madame Guillotine.

In the corner of the room you discover a severed hand so fresh from dismemberment that it twitches.