4. Branks were used to punish gossipers, slanderers, and those who simply talked too much
In the late 17th century, a device which placed a bit in the mouth, supported by a cage around the head, was used to punish those who had proven themselves offensive verbally. They were called branks. They were also called scold’s bridles and gossip’s bridles. They were ordered to be worn by local authorities by both men and women, but were most frequently inflicted upon women. As their use spread to England, they were often placed on a woman upon a complaint being lodged by her husband. The punishment was intended not only to stop the person from speaking (and obviously eating and drinking) but as a public humiliation, with the wearer paraded in the streets or exhibited in a public place.
The bit contained a sharpened spike which pressed against the tongue, cutting into it if moved, and often even when it did not move. Usually, the device was ordered to be worn for no more than 24 hours, though in the jails and workhouses of the time they were ordered for offenses not related to speech, and worn for longer periods, removed temporarily to allow the intake of food and water. They did not for the most part join in the migration to the Americas, though similar devices were used to control slaves in Africa awaiting shipment to the New World colonies, and in Virginia in the early 1700s.