# Not for the squeamish: decapitated head awareness? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2004, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884 "2004-10-18T19:45:34Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/1 "2004-10-18T19:45:34Z")
I’ve been reading this book, [Stiff](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393050939/) (which is quite good, really) and it had a chapter about decapitated heads, focusing mostly on the history of the guillotine, and the research that French doctors did to determine whether or not those heads actually felt anything after that fatal cut. (The guillotine was used, apparently, because it was considered more “humane” than the hangman’s rope so the question raised was whether it was _really_ more humane or not.) The author quotes a French doctor who was able to observe a guy whose head was _just_ cut off. I’m too lazy to dredge up the book and type out his long quote, but basically as soon as the head was decapitated and hit the basket, the victim’s eyes blinked quickly several times. Then they closed (most would assume that the guy was dead at this point). But the doctor loudly yelled out the victim’s name, and the eyes slowly opened, and the pupils of the victim focused on the doctor. Eyes closed again, doctor yelled out the victim’s name again, once again the eyes opened, _looked_ at the doctor with focus, then closed. After that, the eyes no longer would focus and it seemed like the head was really dead. Oh. My. Gosh. I had no idea that this happened. I found some other cites (don’t know how reputable they are). [The Severed Head in Fact and Fiction](http://www.strangehorizons.com/2002/20020930/severed_head.shtml): > [@](#): > > Partly, I think, because the guillotine also led to a public and heated discussion of whether or not those severed heads retained sensation. The presence of so many severed heads naturally led to amateur experimentation as well as more rigorous testing. A famous example involved Charlotte Corday, the young woman who stabbed Marat to death. After Corday was guillotined, her head was displayed to the crowd, and the executioner proceeded to slap both of her cheeks. Members of the crowd claimed that she blushed, and that her face assumed an indignant expression at the affront. And from [this site about car accidents](http://www.corkscrew-balloon.com/01/02/1fll/part3.html) (partway down the page): > [@](#): > > “Neckbelt wearers are warned that a severed human head may remain alive for up to two minutes before blood loss, oxygen starvation and shock trauma cause it to lose consciousness. ‘Brain death is something science still knows very little about,’ said Chrysler safety engineer Tom Savini, ‘but drivers should take note that law enforcement personnel have observed bouncing, rolling severed heads blinking their eyes and gasping for air as if attempting to speak minutes after decapitation on more than one occasion’.” This is bizarre stuff. I’m not usually a morbid type but since decapitated heads have been such a subject of horror and science fiction stories (see the first cite that I linked to) I guess it’s natural to have some curiosity about the subject. I had no idea that there were claims that these heads were _aware_ after the cut. Yikes. (By the way, I highly recommend the book _Stiff_ by Mary Roach. Read the reviews on [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com) to more thoroughly understand the book’s appeal.) ---
**Author:** ![zev\_steinhardt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/97f17d/32.png) [@zev\_steinhardt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zev_steinhardt)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/2 "2004-10-18T19:48:26Z")
I know Cecil covered this in one of his books. Zev Steinhardt ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/3 "2004-10-18T19:53:32Z")
All hail the [master.](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_262.html) ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/4 "2004-10-18T19:57:49Z")
Beat me to it, Loach! I just looked up that article myself. Didn’t think to look through Cecil’s articles until zev mentioned it. I can buy that there would be some awareness (several seconds—less than a minute), but if some are saying that _minutes_ pass and the head is still aware, that I would find hard to believe. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/5 "2004-10-18T20:02:09Z")
Did the law enforcement get there quick enough to see the heads still bouncing down the road or, perhaps, did they bounce and roll the heads themselves trying to elicit a response? I know the one direction my eyes will be looking if I ever get my head cut off and that’s straight down! Ugh, talk about the most brutal of realizations! ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/6 "2004-10-18T20:04:01Z")
I just finished reading _Stiff_ last night and I would really recommend it, too. Some of her footnotes, while completely off-topic, were a riot. I will never look at a boomerang the same way again. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![cbawlmer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/71e660/32.png) [@cbawlmer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cbawlmer)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/7 "2004-10-18T21:58:49Z")
The Chrysler safety guy’s name was Tom Savini? The same [Tom Savini](http://us.imdb.com/name/nm0767741/) who is famous for his gory special effects in movies? ---
**Author:** ![Scarface\_Z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Scarface\_Z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarface_Z)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/8 "2004-10-19T01:15:23Z")
i saw that story aboutthe guy blinking and stuff on the history channel. except i seem to remember them saying that the doctor pumped warm sheeps blood into the head first. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/9 "2004-10-19T01:39:55Z")
Well, you’ve been had by your second “cite” about the neckbelts. It’s an old Onion article. I don’t have access to stuff that old, and I’m too lazy to dig out my books. But it’s definitely an Onion article. Robin ---
**Author:** ![yosemite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/3ab097/32.png) [@yosemite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yosemite)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/10 "2004-10-19T01:57:01Z")
> [@MsRobyn](#): > > Well, you’ve been had by your second “cite” about the neckbelts. It’s an old Onion article. I don’t have access to stuff that old, and I’m too lazy to dig out my books. But it’s definitely an Onion article. > > Robin Ah. That explains the Tom Savini reference. Thanks for the heads up! (Sorry, I could not resist. That line just wrote itself . . . ) ---
**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/11 "2004-10-19T02:04:26Z")
[http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=5383262#post5383262](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?postid=5383262#post5383262) [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=196590&highlight=decapitated](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=196590&highlight=decapitated) [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=30014&highlight=decapitated](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=30014&highlight=decapitated) [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=30014&highlight=decapitated](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=30014&highlight=decapitated) [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=242&highlight=decapitated](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=242&highlight=decapitated) Also valuable to such a topic are threads that we’ve done about Cecil’s column. The newest one is at the top, the oldest at the bottom. The matter isn’t as clear ‘cut’ as you think. ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/12 "2004-10-19T02:16:28Z")
And if you’re _really_ interested in some of the gorier aspects of this, then you might want to check out the book [_IF WE CAN KEEP A SEVERED HEAD ALIVE… Discorporation and U.S. Patent 4,666,425_ by Chet Fleming](http://www.loompanics.com/cgi-local/SoftCart.exe/cgi-local/smpagegen.exe?U+scstore+kykt5202ff809c80+-c+scstore.cfg+-p+91076). Pleasant dreams… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/13 "2004-10-19T12:36:08Z")
> [@](#): > > Not for the squeamish: decapitated head awareness? Is it Decapitated Head Awareness week again? What color ribbon is that? ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/14 "2004-10-19T14:39:29Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Is it Decapitated Head Awareness week again? What color ribbon is that? Son of a…I specifically opened this thread to make this joke! Damn you! Damn you, I say! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mycroft\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/898d66/32.png) [@Mycroft\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mycroft_H)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/15 "2004-10-19T15:52:41Z")
[Red Queen’s voice] Off with his head! [/Red Queen’s voice] ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/16 "2004-10-19T16:15:29Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Is it Decapitated Head Awareness week again? What color ribbon is that? Dude, ribbons are soooo last week. We’re wearing wrist bands now. ---
**Author:** ![LeeshaJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@LeeshaJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LeeshaJoy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/17 "2004-10-19T16:47:45Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > Is it Decapitated Head Awareness week again? What color ribbon is that? [Green.](http://www.unsolvedmysteries.com/usm350287.html) ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/18 "2004-10-19T17:01:53Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Dude, ribbons are soooo last week. We’re wearing wrist bands now. Odd, I’d think chokers or collars would be so much more appropriate. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/19 "2004-10-19T17:40:24Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > Son of a…I specifically opened this thread to make this joke! Damn you! Damn you, I say! 😉 Mwwaaahhahahahah!! ---
**Author:** ![ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ComeToTheDarkSideWeHaveCookies)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884/20 "2004-10-19T17:46:56Z")
Hijack warning… This thread reminded me of a movie I watched as a very young child. Since it is such an early and dusty memory, I’m guessing that the montage of scenes that I remember are due to some sort of low level trauma from the shock of what I was watching. This of course has my adult self extremely curious as to what exactly I was watching. Here’s what I remember: It was a period film that involved a scheduled guillotine execution. There was a man who’s job it was to store the guillotine blade and bring the blade to the town square at the appropriate time. A loved one of the person set to be executed was attempting to kill or otherwise delay the blade-keeper (thus preventing/delaying the execution), and almost succeeded, but not quite. The memories of these few scenes are oddly vivid to me. I clearly recall the blade-keeper covering the blade with cloth and tucking it under his arm. I think the attempted assasin might’ve tried to either poison or stab him. Either way, the blade-keeper barely makes it to the town square and falls either dead or unconcious a few feet away from the guillotine, where the other folks involved in the execution are able to finish his job for him, foiling all efforts to interfer with the beheading. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/not-for-the-squeamish-decapitated-head-awareness/269884.md?page=2)