Nestled within the historic fort walls of Belgrade, a museum lures in visitors with the dark allure of medieval torture. For a modest fee, tourists are ushered into a world that claims to showcase the grim realities of the past. However, the presentation often sanitizes, oversimplifies, or sensationalizes the truth to fit a narrative that commodifies suffering for entertainment, glossing over the societal and class injustices that fueled such practices. This exploitation raises questions about the ethics of turning brutality into a spectacle and whether these institutions do more harm than good in our understanding of history.
Rewriting Pain: How Medieval Torture Museums Misrepresent History for Profit
All Versions
Jan-19
Crime
Score: 0.50
Tourists trickle down into the bowels of Belgrade’s monumental fortress, attracted by banners promising a "MEDIEVAL TORTURE MUSEUM." A $5 entrance fee secures access to three dusty, gloomy rooms, tucked away in the battlements alongside a range of other money…
From Atlas Obscura
Jan-19
Crime
Right Variant
Score: 0.80
In the heart of Belgrade's fortress lies a museum dedicated to the medieval era's approach to law and order. With an affordable entry fee, visitors are given an unflinching look at the methods used to maintain societal order and punish those who dared to defy it. These museums serve as crucial reminders of the progress humanity has made in the realm of justice and governance. Critics who see these displays as mere profit-driven exploits fail to appreciate the importance of remembering the past, including its harsher aspects, to ensure the mistakes of yesteryears are not repeated.
From Atlas Obscura