In the context of bondage, stocks are a type of sex furniture or device used to secure parts of a submissive’s body. Some bondage stocks resemble Medieval punishment devices while others have more modern designs.
History of Stocks
The first stocks were wooden devices with foot holes used to punish prisoners in medieval Europe. Criminals who committed minor offenses, such as public drunkenness or brawling, would sit restricted in the stocks while the public humiliated them by spitting, verbally abusing, and throwing food at them. By the colonial period, time in the stocks was a popular punishment for escaped slaves.
Stocks were similar to the pillory, a lockable hinged device that restrained the head and wrists from the medieval period. As criminals couldn’t sit down in the pillory, it was initially used for slightly greater crimes like dishonest trading and sedition. By 1816, the British restricted the use of the pillory to prisoners charged with perjury and subordination. The use of the pillory was outlawed in England and Wales in 1837. While their use was infrequent, stocks remained a legal punishment until 1872. Today the term stocks is used for sex devices resembling both the stocks and the pillory, along with new devices that restrain the genitals and digits.
Types of Stocks
The most common types of stocks in BDSM are:
- Ankle and wrist stocks: Sex furniture with hinged boards attached to standing frames with holes for restraining the wrists, ankles, or both of a standing submissive.
- Yokes: Simple frameless wooden boards with holes for the wrists and sometimes the head.
- Hobbles: Like a yoke, but with holes meant for the ankles.
- Genital stocks: A stand with a pole and device for restraining the penis or female genitals.
- Finger pillories: Like traditional pillories with small holes for restraining fingers while they are bent at the knuckles.
- Sitting stocks: Two hinged boards that close together with holes for the feet, and sometimes the arms, with a bench behind for the seated submissive.
- Positioning stocks: Stocks or pillories with support for the submissive’s body, such as hip bars or kneeling pads.
Use of Stocks in BDSM and Bondage
While stocks were historically used as a punishment, BDSM practitioners have adapted them for sexual play. They provide an alternative way to restrain a partner than traditional bondage tools such as rope and handcuffs. Their effectiveness as a restraint device and historical roots can make them an appealing option for some BDSM practitioners.