Basic Information
Hanging by the ribs is a somewhat inefficient form of execution performed by inserting a sharpened hook into the side of the condemned so that it emerges from between their lower ribs and then suspending them from a gallows by that hook until they die. Whilst painful, being hooked through the ribs is not painful enough to kill through shock, nor traumatic enough that the injury itself is fatal so death must generally be looked for through positional asphyxia, exposure or thirst. Realistically the condemned will also need to be immobilised or there is a reasonable chance that they might be able to unhook themselves (or, more drastically, break the ribs and tear the hook free) and escape. Potentially this might even serve as a form of high end corporal punishment rather than being definitively capital - the subject is suspended for a fixed period and, if still alive, is considered adequately punished and cut down. Wound infections are also a possibility, especially if the hook is re-used, and many jurisdictions are liable to allow passers by to hurl material (and at the very least abuse) at the condemned person1.