The song Salome by Morten Harket tells the story of the biblical figure of the same name. Salome was only twelve years old when she danced at a banquet for her stepfather, King Herod Antipas. Her dance so entranced Herod that he offered her anything she wanted in return, up to half his kingdom. Prompted by her mother, she asked for the head of John the Baptist, who had been imprisoned by Herod for speaking out against his marriage to his brother's wife, Herodias. The lyrics of the song suggest that Salome was almost mystically drawn to John the Baptist, whose eyes were "inward and black." The song also suggests that John was similarly drawn to her, taking her "to eternity" when he was executed. The lyrics also touch on the symbolism of John's baptism, which is represented by the "dipping" of a piece of straw or hair into water. Salome is compared to this symbol, which is eternal while other royal names fade away. The song is a meditation on the power of desire and its consequences, and suggests that Salome was as much a victim of her own desires as she was of Herod's lust and her mother's manipulation.
