What is the meaning of the phrase ‘one’s head on a plate’?
A very harsh punishment for a wrong deed or crime.
What is the origin of the phrase ‘one’s head on a plate’?
The origin of the phrase ‘one’s head on a plate’ is typically attributed to the New Testament of the Christian bible. In Matthew 14, there’s a story in which the daughter of Herodias was promised an oath by King Herod to give her whatever she might ask. On prompting from her mother she answered ‘Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter’. This follows John the Baptist telling King Herod that it was not lawful for him to take his brother’s wife. This story also appears in the Gospel of Mark.
Since that time both the phrase ‘head on a plate’ and ‘head on a platter’ have been in use to denote a wish for revenge against an enemy, especially a severe repercussion such as an assassination by beheading. But this form of a wish or request for revenge is not limited to Roman culture alone…
For instance, before the time of Jesus in 44 BC, Pompey’s severed head was presented as a gift from the Egyptians to Julius Caesar. Similarly in Islam, caliphs were often presented with the heads of their enemies, and Japanese warriors would show off the heads of the men they had killed and present them on special display boards. Then in the 1500s, King Henry VIIIth of Great Britain beheaded two out of his six wives, namely Anne Boleyn, and Katherine Howard.
Variations of the phrase include ‘one’s head on a silver platter’ and ‘one’s head on a golden platter’.
What are some notable uses of the phrase ‘one’s head on a plate’?
Despite the long gone origin of the phrase, it’s still something you’ll often hear today, for instance in TV dramas, in the media, and in the corporate world.
The phrase ‘one’s head on a plate’ has also appeared in classic literature, such as in The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas published in 1846.
