Amsterdam's Torture Museum

Like many travelers, I have a soft spot in my heart for tourist traps. Whether it's the politically incorrect cheesiness of South of the Border or the shabby weirdness of The Thing, nothing brings a smile to my face better than some cheap, gaudy attempt to capture my attention.

Amsterdam's Torture Museum fits the bill perfectly. Behind a pseudo-spooky facade are reproductions of torture instruments from the Bad Old Days. You've got famous nasties such as the rack and the stocks, as well as lesser-known evils like the Flute of Shame. Pictured here is the Inquisition Chair. The victim was strapped in and the weight of his own body caused him to sink onto the spikes. Check out the gallery for more photos and descriptions.

The whole place is lit by weird red, orange, and blue lights and is a maze of stairs and hallways that makes you feel like you're in a medieval dungeon. Signs in several languages (including English) give basic descriptions of what you're seeing, and images pulled from old books show the torture instruments in action.

It's all very garish and exploitative. No attempt is made to be socially redeeming by discussing modern torture. For example, there's no display about waterboarding, used by the Spanish Inquisition, the Khmer Rouge, and the U.S. government. Of course there shouldn't be because the U.S. government says waterboarding isn't torture and they only use it on the guilty anyway. I know they're speaking the truth because the U.S. government never lies and never makes mistakes.

The Torture Museum's garish displays and Wikipedia-style descriptions are mere low-brow titillation. It's when you think of what these objects really mean, and how similar instruments of cruelty are still in common use today, that this horror show becomes truly frightening.


Don't miss the rest of my series: Lowdown on the Low Countries.

Coming up next: Amsterdam day trip: Van Brederode castle!

This trip was partially funded by Amsterdam's Tourism and Congress Bureau and Cool Capitals. All opinions, however, are my own.

Gallery: Amsterdam's Torture Museum

Filed under: History, Learning, Europe, Netherlands