I was talking with an old friend tonight, I mentioned something about tickling,
and he said that he had been to Austria, and there was a man there who had
been stoned to death because he murdered 6 of his wives by tickling them to death. I of course asked if he had taken a photo of any of that, and this
is what he sent to me, as well as this blurb (which is apparently a Salzburg
"Fun Fact". Well, of course it's a fun fact, it invoves tickling! But wait.. it also involves murder.. Oh, now I'm just confused 😉
The legend of the seven crosses
In the historic cemetery of St. Peter you will find a grave with seven crosses. According to a legend, this is the tomb of a murderer and his six victims. The court-mason and bricklayer Sebastian Stumpfegger is said to be the murderer of his seven wives. All of Salzburg was puzzled, when one wife after the other died and Stumpfegger got married again and again; but nobody ever found the faintest hint for an unnatural death.
After he got married to his seventh’s wife, the mystery was solved: the woman could escape the murderer and reported how he managed to kill his victims without leaving any traces of a crime. He had bandaged his wives with tape, leaving only the feet exposed. Then, he tickled them until they died.
Stumpfegger was involved with the building of the Kollegienkirche in Salzburg and the Trinity pillar (“Dreifaltigkeitssäule”) in Linz. He was a wealthy man and had 21 children with his seven wives. However, if anything about the legend with the murder is true in any sense is unknown today.
and he said that he had been to Austria, and there was a man there who had
been stoned to death because he murdered 6 of his wives by tickling them to death. I of course asked if he had taken a photo of any of that, and this
is what he sent to me, as well as this blurb (which is apparently a Salzburg
"Fun Fact". Well, of course it's a fun fact, it invoves tickling! But wait.. it also involves murder.. Oh, now I'm just confused 😉
The legend of the seven crosses
In the historic cemetery of St. Peter you will find a grave with seven crosses. According to a legend, this is the tomb of a murderer and his six victims. The court-mason and bricklayer Sebastian Stumpfegger is said to be the murderer of his seven wives. All of Salzburg was puzzled, when one wife after the other died and Stumpfegger got married again and again; but nobody ever found the faintest hint for an unnatural death.
After he got married to his seventh’s wife, the mystery was solved: the woman could escape the murderer and reported how he managed to kill his victims without leaving any traces of a crime. He had bandaged his wives with tape, leaving only the feet exposed. Then, he tickled them until they died.
Stumpfegger was involved with the building of the Kollegienkirche in Salzburg and the Trinity pillar (“Dreifaltigkeitssäule”) in Linz. He was a wealthy man and had 21 children with his seven wives. However, if anything about the legend with the murder is true in any sense is unknown today.
