The physical intimidation intensified. Alma and Amulek were starved and stripped naked and continued to be bound. All of these actions were not unusual in Maya culture. A painted pot has been discovered that shows captives before a ruler, and they are stripped and bound, with some indication that they may have been beaten. In Palenque, Mexico, one of the murals showed men with fingers outstretched in what was thought to have been a graceful gesture, until cleaning the mural uncovered that their fingernails had been removed and blood dripped from the fingers. The use of such draconian measures against captives resonates with the poor treatment of Alma and Amulek. Very similar actions were taken against the sons of Mosiah in the Lamanite city of Middoni, as we will see in Alma 20:30.