ABSTRACT
The expression "to lose one's head" serves to describe a variety of sometimes conflicting states in which an individual may find him or herself. Judith holds up the severed head of Holofernes by his hair in full view, about to place it in a sack to transport it elsewhere as irrefutable proof of the annihilation of the enemy and as a trophy to be displayed to her people. A general reflection that follows on from these considerations concerns any potential further treatments that may have been reserved for the bodies of enemies deprived of their heads, and thus of their recognizable identity. The work from Tell Tayinat remains unique, with the exception of some less detailed instances within the vast repertoire of images on the Neo-Assyrian orthostats, and representations of the act of decapitation itself and of prominent individuals about to be decapitated.
