Water test

Witch dunking.

The test of water (also known as Bathing or Dipping Witches , from the English. Witch dunking ) - a kind of horde used in the ancient East (in particular, according to Judgment Hammurabi ) and the medieval criminal process. The associated criminal defendant was thrown into the pond and found not guilty if the water did not accept him. Otherwise, the accused was executed.

In addition, in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, the test of water was used to “determine” witches : the suspect in witchcraft was also tied up and thrown into the water. The paradox of the method in this case was that the drowning of the suspect was evidence of innocence - it was believed that water, as an element of purity, would not accept an “unclean person”. Accordingly, if the suspect surfaced, this indicated her affiliation with the witches. The method often belonged to the category of the so-called Divine Judgment .