9 Anti-Snoring Aids From 1917 That Look Like Medieval Torture Devices
SHARE

Snorers are selfish, horrible people, it’s true. But no one – no matter how annoying their bodily sounds are – deserves to be subjected to the terrifying devices in this gallery. In 1917, PopSci ran a story about nine of science’s most cutting-edge snoring-prevention inventions. Some of the devices are so gruesome (and potentially lethal) that it’s hard to tell whether the inventor was trying to cure snoring or just punish wearer for being so irritating.

See the gallery.

Snoring

Silence The Nasal Nightengale

“The inventor fails to tell how this man could inhale enough air to raise a snore if the strap were tight enough to hold the ball in place.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Rings And Tethers, Oh My!

“This apparatus has a tether which prevents it from getting lost in case of a blow-out. [It] is supplied with flanges – to fit under the upper and lower lips. They are to keep the from wandering from side to side. But the striking feature is a ring which protrudes from between the lips. A string attached to the ring can be tied around the neck.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Ow! Ow!

“The man who devised this apparatus has probably suffered many things in Pullman sleepers or elsewhere. He has not the least compassion on anybody who snores. His scheme is to make life on the flat of the back so miserable that a snorer assuming such a position will wake up at least long enough to wish he had never been born.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Well, That’s One Solution

“It may be confidently stated that the wearer of this device would not snore for the simple reason that snores accompany sleep and for him sleep is altogether out of the question.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

If It Hurts, You’re Doing It Right

“The inventor believes more punishment can be inflicted by strapping the back-breaking object directly between the shoulders. He advocates the use of a rubber pneumatic ball to be fastened to the belt in such a manner that it will be neither punctured nor displaced.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Pad and strap

“A pad, either rounded or elliptical, is strapped to the small of the back by means of a belt. The idea is to keep the sleeper off an even keel and thus prevent his useless sounding of the fog siren.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

An anti-snoring masterpiece

“Here is a real masterpiece. The device, turned one way, will completely silence the snorer. Reversed, it allows him a little musical leeway. A technical description of the device is beyond the power of the writer.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Breathe Quietly, Or Die

“Any snorer who defied this anti-snoring plug clamped in his mouth would do so over his own dead body, so to speak: that is, he would be suffocated in the attempt.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.
Snoring

Breathing Options, Limited

“Through this one-way valve the snorer exhales through the mouth if he wishes, but there the mouth-breathing option ends.” Read the full story in our November 1917 issue.