LIFE & CULTURE

Could This Marital Prison Be The Remedy For Divorce?

Yes, we said prison

Sick of your significant other? So sick of them that you’re considering divorce? Perhaps what you need isn’t space, it’s actually quite the opposite.

In the tiny town of Biertan in central Romania, couples used to be locked in a small room for up to six weeks if they were considering ending their marriage. 

Sound crazy? Perhaps, but in the 300 years that Biertan bishops enforced the rule, the town only had one divorce. 

You can’t argue with statistics like that!

Dan and serena in elevator
It worked for Dan and Serena, who got back together after being stuck in an elevator on ‘Gossip Girl’

However, the statistics potentially aren’t quite as romantic as they seem. Biertan’s current priest Ulf Ziegler goes on to explain that the couples likely ended up staying together for financial reasons, rather than the prison allowing them time to realise their undying love.

“The reason was to work and to survive,” Ziegler told the BBC. “If a couple was locked inside for six weeks, it was very hard for them to have enough food the following year, so there was pressure to get out and to continue to work together.” 

Today, the small, dark prison is a museum, which tourists can visit, complete with fed-up married mannequins.

RELATED: The Secret To A Happy Marriage According To Science

Related stories