Execution by wheel. Historical artwork of torture and a death penalty being carried out using a breaking wheel (also called a Catherine wheel). The condemned man has been laid out on wooden blocks with gaps left where the heavy wheel will be dropped to break his arms and legs. Depending on the degree of torture intended and whether the sentence was merciful or not, the fatal blows to the chest and abdomen would either be delivered last or first. This wood engraving dates from circa 1888.