Virgin of Nuremberg

The torture device commonly known as the Iron Maiden was also called the Virgin of Nuremberg.

But was it really used in the middle ages?

Here's a whole big discussion about it.

And another, more concise one.

It may just be a modern concept, like the chastity belt.

But then there's this crazy Italian horror movie:

DIsturbing Wartime Experiments

This story on Japanese doctors doing live experiments--vivisection--on American POWs is one of the most disturbing things I've read in a long time.