Wendy, you make a very, very intelligent observation, “is Salome a cruel woman with cold blood?”

In the Bible she was not, but after these paintings began to appear, the image of her began to change. These paintings show Salome as a seducer. The mass population actually made her to be a cannibal! A very famous opera was written called Salome where, in it, Salome asks for the head of John the Baptist but finds out after the beheading that she is in love with him. Very tragic. Throughout all of this we must keep in mind though that Salome was a Jew and her Jewish heritage is a VERY big deal.

People, after the opera and paintings, associated Salome with the Jewish culture and people. Salome was the word used to greet other Jews in Hebrew and this tie brought upon many terrible stereotypes. Salome became an anti-semitic icon that was spread throughout the world.

So when you say “Is Salome a cruel woman with cold blood?” The answer is unfortunately yes. But it was not always the case. Very interesting and deep topic.