Howard Pyle's 20th century illustration of a marooned pirate is the best that i've ever seen at depicting the misery and solitude of being marooned on a desolate and remote island or coastline .. the practice was a penalty for crewmen, or for captains at the hands of a crew .. generally, a marooned man was set on a deserted island, often no more than a sand bar at low tide.The chief practitioners of marooning were 17th and 18th century pirates, to such a degree that they were frequently referred to as "marooners" .. the pirate articles of captains Bartholomew Roberts and John Phillips specify marooning as a punishment for cheating one's fellow pirates or other offenses. In this context, to be marooned is euphemistically to be "made governor of an island".He would be given some food, a container of water, and a loaded pistol so he could commit suicide if he desired .. the outcome of marooning was generally fatal ..