Whipping post

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

whipping post
    n 1: post formerly used in public to which offenders are tied to
         be whipped

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Whipping \Whip"ping\,
   a & n. from {Whip}, v.
   [1913 Webster]

   {Whipping post}, a post to which offenders are tied, to be
      legally whipped.
      [1913 Webster]