# Cutting off a hand **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 28, 2013, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891 "2013-04-28T05:29:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jormungandr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@Jormungandr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jormungandr)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 5:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/1 "2013-04-28T05:29:46Z")
A friend is writing a fantasy story where the main character gets his hand chopped off for stealing. He wants a bit more detail on the procedure, such as what do they do to prevent the person from bleeding to death and sword/axe types. Most of the information out there seems to be where it’s done in the real world and the crimes for it. Anyone have any information? ---
**Author:** ![j\_sum1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8baadc/32.png) [@j\_sum1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j_sum1)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/2 "2013-04-28T06:04:06Z")
well, nothing much to add except that the scenario is not so strange. [http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/world/europe/article3749762.ece](http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/world/europe/article3749762.ece) ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/3 "2013-04-28T06:39:03Z")
I always thought they stopped the bleeding by cauterizing the wound? ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/4 "2013-04-28T08:08:58Z")
I’ve heard of cauterizing, usually by heating up metal or using a hot metal cutting instrument, and also by dipping the stump in hot tar, which seals the wound to prevent infection, as well. ---
**Author:** ![aux203](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/77aa72/32.png) [@aux203](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aux203)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/5 "2013-04-28T12:51:41Z")
If you cut off a hand sharply you can simply wrap it with a compressive bandage and it will stop bleeding on its own without much fuss. Applying hot irons, tar, etc actually sound pretty pointless to me. An amputation through the wrist just doesn’t bleed that much It’s very, very difficulty to bleed to death from almost anything below the elbow unless you are on blood thinners or get a tangential cut to an artery, and even then it would take much longer than you might think. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/6 "2013-04-28T23:41:40Z")
I’m NOT going to give any links (partly because I don’t remember them anyway) but there are plenty of actual ‘arabs-cutting-off-thief’s-hands’ videos out there. Sometimes its chopped off quickly with a sword, sometimes sawed off (still pretty quickly) with a large knife. Surprisingly there isn’t usually a huge amount of blood with a hand. Be very wary of searching for these though, as you’ll also find things much, \*\*\*MUCH \*\*\*more graphic and unpleasant along with them… :eek: ---
**Author:** ![chorpler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chorpler/32/2888_2.png) [@chorpler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chorpler)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/7 "2013-04-29T21:00:59Z")
Stuff that will haunt you forever even if you only see a few seconds of it. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![dstarfire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dstarfire/32/5762_2.png) [@dstarfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dstarfire)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/8 "2013-04-29T22:06:09Z")
> [@chorpler](#): > > Stuff that will haunt you forever even if you only see a few seconds of it. ☹ Cite please. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/9 "2013-04-29T23:38:42Z")
> [@dstarfire](#): > > Cite please. 😛 Like I said, not a chance. Just put your search terms into Google (and make sure Safe Search is OFF) and you can find stuff fairly easily (that’s how I did)… ---
**Author:** ![dstarfire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dstarfire/32/5762_2.png) [@dstarfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dstarfire)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/10 "2013-04-29T23:50:14Z")
> [@Hail\_Ants](#): > > Like I said, not a chance. Just put your search terms into Google (and make sure Safe Search is OFF) and you can find stuff fairly easily (that’s how I did)… [That was a joke](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTwnwbG9YLE). ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/11 "2013-04-30T03:27:40Z")
> [@aux203](#): > > It’s very, very difficulty to bleed to death from almost anything below the elbow unless you are on blood thinners or get a tangential cut to an artery, and even then it would take much longer than you might think. Why does slitting one’s wrist work for suicide? Or maybe, how long does it take to work? ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/12 "2013-04-30T03:37:53Z")
> [@aux203](#): > > If you cut off a hand sharply you can simply wrap it with a compressive bandage and it will stop bleeding on its own without much fuss. Applying hot irons, tar, etc actually sound pretty pointless to me. An amputation through the wrist just doesn’t bleed that much > > It’s very, very difficulty to bleed to death from almost anything below the elbow unless you are on blood thinners or get a tangential cut to an artery, and even then it would take much longer than you might think. Fascinating. But below-elbow territory gets it’s blood faithfully pumped all the time. Chop something off, the spigot is still open, right? And the pumping pressure–what? > [@gigi](#): > > Why does slitting one’s wrist work for suicide? Or maybe, how long does it take to work? Cross-cutting does not work. Up-down cutting takes forever, as it were. Empirical research. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 11:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cutting-off-a-hand/656891/13 "2013-04-30T11:06:22Z")
> [@dstarfire](#): > > [That was a joke](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTwnwbG9YLE). Sorry. Was thrown off by the [seriousness/icky-ness of the subject…](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0no6vDiZa4o)