The beheading of John the Baptist, also known as the decollation of Saint John the Baptist or the beheading of the Forerunner, is a biblical event commemorated as a holy day by various Christian churc
Salome with the Head of John the Baptist by Caravaggio, National Gallery, London, c. 1607–1610
The ruins of Machaerus at a hilltop overlooking the Dead Sea in modern-day Jordan, where John's decapitation reportedly took place around 32 AD.
Salome and the Apparition of the Baptist's Head by Gustave Moreau. Watercolour painting, 1876. Now in Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France.
Icon of the Beheading of John the Baptist (Museum of Icons, Recklinghausen)
Herodias
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Herodias was a princess of the Herodian dynasty of Judaea during the time of the Roman Empire. Christian writings connect her with the execution of John the Baptist.
Beheading of John the Baptist
…John the Baptist because he had publicly reproved Herod for divorcing his first wife and unlawfully taking his sister-in-law (his brother's wife) Herodias as his second wife. He then ordered him to be killed by beheading, which occurred at a hilltop overlooking the Dead Sea at Machaerus in modern-day…
Herodias, by Paul Delaroche, depicting the princess (right) with John's head
Feast of Herod, Lucas Cranach the Elder, 1531
Feast of Herod, Peter Paul Rubens
Feast of Herod, Mattia Preti, c. 1660