> ...I
> visited a castle in Gent which had a exhibition on torture in it.  It may
> seem like an odd interest, but I was wondering if there were any such
> museums in the United States.

There are a few publications you might want to check out if you arereally
interested in this topic:

Mannix, Daniel P.  1964.  The History of Torture.  Reprinted by Dell Books
in 1983.

Abbot, G.  1986.  Tortures of the Tower of London.  David & Charles, London
(Abbot is a yeoman warder at the tower)

Held, Robert.  1985.  Inquisition/Inquisicio'n.  A Bilingual Guide to the
Exhibition
of Torture Instruments from the Middle Ages to the Industrial Era Presented
in Various European Cities in 1983-1987.  Qua D'Arno, Florence.
(In English and Spanish, lots of illustrations, includes some torture
instruments
used in North America in Colonial times).

As for torture museums, the only one I have ever seen was in Lima, Peru.  If
you
are ever there, the Museo del Tribunal de la Santa Inquisicio'n is
fascinating,
on Plaza Bolivar (Calle Junin 548 ca. Avenida Abancay).  There is a good
collection of torture instruments in the basement.

John Simmons
Natural History Museum
University of Kansas
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