Trial by water

The defendant was bound in the fetal position and

thrown into a body of water. Contrary to popular
belief, those that sank werent drowned but were
hauled out of the water, and those that floated didnt float because they could swim: If he or
she floated, they were guilty, and if they sank, they were presumed innocent. This was the most
common ordeal undergone in the New World, and was seen during the time of the Salem witch
trials. A surprisingly high number of people were deemed innocent by this method, but it was
largely the younger women and the men who were exonerated in these trials. Their lower body
fat levels probably helped them sink down in the water.

Trial by hot water

The arm was plunged elbow-deep into hot water, often to
grasp a ring, stone, or holy object at the bottom of a
cauldron. After several days, if no blistering or peeling
was present, the defendant was presumed innocent.
Since it was not always boiling water that was used, this was one of the most easily-
manipulated trials for the ordealists to work over.

Trial By Tagena
Very similar to trial by ordeal bean, but used in
Madagascar. The nut of the tagena tree (Cerbera
odollam) contains cerberin, which is related to the toxin
found in foxglove (digoxin). This causes the heart to
fibrillate (an uncoordinated spasmodic contraction that
fails to pump blood), and in many cases, completely stop
beating. The trial by Tagena has been used against
alleged witchcraft practitioners in Madagascar for over
500 years, and in the mid-19th century, was responsible
for over 2 percent of the deaths (3000 people) in
Madagascar every year. Its use was banned in 1861 by
King Radama II, but is still known to be used in homicide and suicide in Madagascar and India,
and in trial by ordeal that continues in remote Madagascar provinces.
TRIAL BY HOST
Relegated to priests accused of crimes, or suspected of lying regarding someone elses crime
(perjury). The priest would go before the altar and pray aloud that God would choke him if he
were not telling the truth. He would then take The Host (the holy eucharist), and if he was
guilty of perjury or the crime, he would either choke or have difficulty swallowing. This had
adegree of psychosomatic truth behind it, if the priest truly believed in the trial, but it was one
of the easiest of the trial by ordeal ceremonies to overcome by the defendant.

TRIAL BY ORDEAL BEAN

A trial of Old Calabar (Akwa Akpanow part of Nigeria), involving the E-ser-e, or the
ordeal bean, now known as the calabar bean (Physostigma venenosum). A common use was in
trials where someone was accused of witchcraft. The defendant would ingest the calabar
beans. If they vomited up the beans, they were presumed innocent, and if they digested the
beans they were presumed guilty. Most defendants who digested the beans were killed by their
effects. The physostigmine effects of the calabar beans are similar to the effects of nerve gasses
that have been used in war; they disrupt the communication between muscles and the nervous
system, and the victim dies of asphyxiation when the diaphragm fails to respond.

SASSYWOOD
The sassywood rituals of Liberia and the West African coast come in several different forms, but
all feature the Ordeal tree (Erythrophleum suaveolens). This tree produces a toxin similar to
the tagena of Madagascar throughout its tissues, but also produces a hemolytic (blood-thinner),
and a convulsant toxin. In the most common ritual, the defendant is called to ingest a
concoction of the sassywood bark. If they vomit it back up, they are presumed innocent.
Another common ordeal is to place a machete into burning sassywood, and when its red-hot,
rub the blade on the legs of the defendants. Whichever defendant is burned is presumed guilty.
Since the disruption of the court systems during Liberias civil war, the sassywood rituals have
been regaining ground as legitimate alternatives to Western justice. Despite being officially
outlawed, the belief in the validity of the rituals has kept the tradition alive, even in well-
educated parts of the country, such as Monrovia. Nevertheless, many people have died
because of being forced through them (unlike the other trials by ordeal, the choice to plead
guilty instead of undergoing sassywood is not usually an option even if it were, it would
mean accepting death by machete rather than death by poisoning), and international justice
communities are seeking to bring down the use of these rituals.