History Main / DecapitationPresentation

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Visionaries}}'', Mortdredd talks about how pleased Darkstorm will be to be presented with Feryl's "head on a silver platter." Feryl just tells Mortdredd to "dream on", and needless to say keeps his head.

* ''Literature/SwansBraidAndOtherTalesOfTerizan'': Swan delivers the heads of the notorious bandit leader Hyrantaz with his followers to the ruling council of Oreen, after having hunted them down with her mercenary band the Wing.

[[quoteright:313:[[ComicBook/MortalKombat https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mortal_kombat.png]]]]
[-[[caption-width-right:313:"A severed head isn't ''that'' gross. [[{{Pun}} You just lack spine.]]"]]-]

* At the end of Act 2 of ''VideoGame/{{ULTRAKILL}}'', a council member's head is presented to the citizens of heaven.

* Happened to [[spoiler:both Miki and her little brother]] in the original ''Manga/{{Devilman}}'' manga.

* In ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'''s Alicization arc, one of Vecta's first displays of power and brutality is him presenting the head of his would-be assassin, [[spoiler:Lipia]], encased in a block of ice.
* In ''LightNovel/Overlord2012'', in a last-ditch effort to avoid [[TheMagocracy The Sorcery Kingdom of Ains Ooal Gown]] from destroying their capital of E-Rantel, the nobles of the Re-Estize Kingdom betray and behead their acting commander [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince Zanac]], showing his severed head to Ains as they beg for mercy. Ains decides not to have them killed, but [[CruelMercy instead has them sent to]] [[TortureTechnician Neuronist Painkill]], [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves where they are to be kept alive until they beg for death]], [[NoKillLikeOverkill and then not allowed to die for some time after that.]]

!![[Film/KillBill Now if any of you tropers got any examples to add, NOW'S THE FUCKING TIME!]]:

!!Examples:

* Prior to the events of ''VideoGame/TheElderScrollsVSkyrim'', an ambassador from the [[AntiHumanAlliance Aldmeri Dominion]] presented Emperor Titus Mede II with a covered cart containing the heads of all agents of [[TheOrder the Blades]] that were posted in the regions of Summerset and Valenwood, as part of an ultimatum for the Empire's surrender to them. Thus began the [[GreatOffscreenWar Great War]], and, afterwards, the signing of the [[WonTheWarLostThePeace White-Gold Concordat]] (which kicked off the events leading up to Skyrim's CivilWar).
** Also, similarly to the ''Fallout'' example above, a combat perk available for both one-handed and two-handed weapons allows the Dragonborn to cut (or smash, if done with a mace/warhammer) their opponent's head off, pick it up, and walk off with it. It only works on characters that belong to playable races though, most likely because higher-level enemies can do it to ''you'' too.

* A painting called ''Return of Judith to Bethulia'' by Saandro Botticelli. Judith's maid is carrying Holofernes' head. [[http://historylink101.com/art/Sandro_Botticelli/images/01_Return_Judith_Bethulia_jpg.jpg See the painting here.]]

** In response to a question regarding what to do with Beasley's corpse, Kyril replies that he needs proof of the kill, for "the heads of the traitors should be more than enough for a successful hunt", [[ImpliedTrope implying]] this trope.

** There's a sci-fi variant in "Exodus From Genesis", where the MonsterOfTheWeek can produce replicants of the crew. After a MirrorMatch with his own replicant self, Crichton walks onto TheBridge holding his ''own'' head.

** There's a sci-fi variant when the MonsterOfTheWeek can produce replicants of the crew. After a MirrorMatch with his own replicant self, Crichton walks onto the bridge holding his ''own'' head.
** After decapitating his ArchEnemy Durka, Rygel wanders around waving it on a stick as a means of demonstrating how badass he can be. And yes, he's one of the technically good guys. He even uses it as a prop while negotiating with a group of mercenaries.

* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'': After decapitating his ArchEnemy Durka, Rygel wanders around waving it on a stick as a means of demonstrating how badass he can be. And yes, he's one of the technically good guys. He even uses it as a prop while negotiating with a group of mercenaries.
--> You need to start acting like professionals. ''(drops Durka's head on the ground)'' That is what we do to people who don't.

* ''[[http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32032/32032-h/32032-h.htm The Second Variety]]'': Decades before Ahnuld played an unstoppable assassin robot, Philip K. Dick showed him how it's done. The cover art shows a man holding up the severed head of a destroyed assassin android [[spoiler:that looks like a 13-year-old boy, not a giant thug]]

* In Creator/RobertEHoward's Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian story "Literature/AWitchShallBeBorn", Salome brings the head of Krallides.

* A common tactic in ''Manga/ShoukokuNoAltair'', since it's set in a medieval time of war. Severed heads are brought back to prove victory in battle, stuck on pikes to intimidate enemies, and handed over to secure a truce.

* In ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'', after his guard Hector screws up, Batiatus later holds up his severed head and warns all his slaves and employees that failure and incompetence will no longer be tolerated.

*** Following the Storming of the Dragonpit, the Shepherds and his followers murdered all of the dragons in the Dragonpit, decapitated their heads, and hung them on the castle walls as the Shepherd preached beneath them.

* ''Literature/FireAndBlood:'' After his death by arrows, Criston Cole's body was decapitation and his head put on a spear by his killers, who kept it as a sort of standard for a while. The ultimate fate of his skull goes unmentioned.

** In the backstory novel, ''Literature/FireAndBlood'':

Compare DeadGuyOnDisplay, HumanHeadOnTheWall, AlasPoorYorick. See also SeveredHeadSports, where the humiliation to the beheaded is taken even further. Can be parodied with LosingYourHead if the decapitated somehow ''survives'' the beheading.

* In ''LightNovel/Overlord2012'', in a last ditch effort to avoid [[TheMagocracy The Sorcery Kingdom of Ains Ooal Gown]] from destroying their capital of E-Rantel, the nobles of the Re-Estize Kingdom betray and behead their acting commander [[RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething Prince Zanac]], showing his severed head to Ains as they beg for mercy. Ains decides not to have them killed, but [[CruelMercy instead has them sent to]] [[TortureTechnician Neuronist Painkill]], [[RewardedAsATraitorDeserves where they are to be kept alive until they beg for death]], [[NoKillLikeOverkill and then not allowed to die for some time after that.]]

* In ''ComicBook/Gambit2022'' interstellar bounty hunter Bounty decides that the simplest way to collect a reward is to bring her quarry's head to the relevant law-enforcement office and brandish it as proof.

** In ''ComicBook/ThePunisherWelcomeBackFrank'' story arc, mob boss Ma Gnucci orders [[ImplacableMan The Russian]] to bring her the Punisher's head. Frank kills The Russian, cuts off his head and brings it to Ma.

** Invoked by Shinji when he found out about what Gendo and SEELE had done to his mother and his family's ones. He swore that he'd stab Gendo's head on a pike and then he'd show it everyone.

* ''Film/RageOfTheMaster'': At the end of the climatic casino fight, Tiger Wong defeats the main villain's number two, the same person who killed Wong's mother, and for good measure proceed to remove his victim's head, intending to put the head at his mother's grave during the funeral.

* The female protagonist in ''Film/{{Trauma}}'' is unable to see the killer's features because he is holding her parents' severed heads on front of his face. [[spoiler:Halfway subverted, since her mother is actually the killer; she is holding her own head in such way that it seems that she has also been decapitated]].

* ''Film/{{Padmaavati}}'': [[BigBad Alauddin]] does this several times. Including to his own uncle, whose head he displays at his coronation.

* In ''Literature/ArciaChronicles'', after Charles Tagere and his followers are ambushed and killed, the commanders' heads are nailed to the gates of a nearby castle. This (like the rest of the second duology) mirrors the actual historical event from the UsefulNotes/WarsOfTheRoses, when [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfPlantagenet Richard Plantagenet's]] head was stuck on a pole on the York city walls after the Battle of Wakefield.

** Daario Naharis creates a scandal when he strides into Queen Daenerys Targaryen' presence, throws the severed head of an enemy at her feet and [[AllGirlsWantBadBoys snogs her in front of the entire royal court]].

* ''The Ballad of Boh Da Thone'' by Creator/RudyardKipling. A British officer promises a hundred rupees to anyone who delivers the head of a notorious bandit chief. After he's retired, a package arrives in the mail with a polite request for said payment, and a head which rolls out in front of his wife. Unsurprisingly, she faints.

* ''Literature/TheExecutioner''. Happens on several occasions with TheMafia; when the ''capo'' says, "I want his head" he usually means it literally.

** Used for BlackComedy when a vampire is shown holding up a human head in apparent version of this trope, only to toss it [[SeveredHeadSports down a bowling alley]].

*** Funny thing is, Londo, who was one of Morden's associates, wasn't present during this conversation and yet [[spoiler:he orders this fate for Morden. And yes, Vir does give it the little wave he promised.]]

** Ned Stark's head is held up for the mob to see after his execution. In a typical KickTheDog moment, King Joffrey shows Sansa Stark the rotting head impaled on a spike, along with other members of her household[[note]]Including, due to it being what was available, a head of George W. Bush[[/note]]. He attempts to follow through on his threat to present her brother's as well, when his house kills said brother but is refused. When Catelyn Stark hears the news of her husband's death, she goes to an imprisoned Jaime Lannister and threatens to cut off his head, [[CutHisHeartOutWithASpoon pack it in a box and send it to his sister]].

* ''Series/TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower'': In order to prove that everyone in Tirharad is in real danger and need to evacuate, Bronwyn is asked to bring a proof to convince the ignorant naysayers. And she does it by bringing them the decapitated head of an orc.

* St. Denis (Dionysius), first bishop of UsefulNotes/{{Paris}}, is usually depicted headless, but holding his head in his hand(s). According to legend he was decapitated along with two companions, Rusticus and Eleutherius, on the orders of the Roman governor on the hill later known as Montmartre ("mountain of the martyrs"). He then got up, picked up his head and walked all the way (ca. 6 km) to the place north of Paris that now bears his name, where he was buried. When Creator/{{Voltaire}} was asked if he thought it was possible that this actually happened, he famously replied: "In cases such as this, it's the first step that counts."

* In ''VideoGame/SouthParkTheStickOfTruth'', though only with castration instead. One quest has the prince of Canada ordering New Kid to go kill the Bishop of Banff, and bring back his balls as proof. Alternatively, New Kid can spare the Bishop, who gives him a pair of Dire Pig testicles to fool the prince.

* In ''VideoGame/FEAR2ProjectOrigin'', [[spoiler:Snake Fist]] is decapitated right before your eyes [[spoiler:the game even has him hand you a {{BFG}} to make sure that you're good and close when it happens]] by a [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot Cyborg Clone Ninja Mutant]], which [[PlayerPunch rips it off and carries it away]]. You find his head a short time later, deliberately left where you will see it and just before they're waiting to ambush you.

* [[spoiler:After occupying the Viscount's Keep]], the Arishok in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeII'' appears briefly to lift the head of [[spoiler:Viscount Dumar]] for display, but dispenses with drama to dismissively roll it down the carpet.
* One possible War Table mission in ''VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition'' has Cullen jokingly suggest this. [[spoiler:You can tell him to do it. He is not pleased ''at all''.]]

-->'''Khotun Khan:''' [[TheyDiedBecauseOfYou Your friend died. For you]]. Now, I must find another... ''and you must chose again''.
* After Chasing Neclord out of North Window in ''VideoGame/SuikodenII'' Flik reports that after the South Window was invaded by Solon Jhee's Battalion he surrendered immediately.....His Head hanged from the Castle Gate the following Morning. Whether it was Solon Jhee's idea or by Luca Blight's orders is unknown.

** Also, similarly to the ''Fallout'' example above, a combat perk available for both one-handed and two-handed weapons allows the Dragonborn to cut (or smash, if done with a mace/warhammer) their opponent's head off, pick it up and walk off with it. It only works on characters that belong to playable races though, most likely because higher-level ennemies can do it to ''you'' too.

** [[spoiler:[[MonsterClown Gamzee]]]] assembles a "motherfucking JURY" consisting of the heads of [[spoiler:Nepeta, Equius, Tavros, Feferi and Eridan, the five dead trolls at that point.]] It all appears to be out of the way and no-one's paying attention to it or him, though.

* In ''Webcomic/{{SSDD}}'' the Anarchist's crazier-than-normal First Adviser Kimple was killed by an angry mob and his head stuffed and mounted in the Citadel's pool hall. Later his successor demands the head of whoever programmed that ICBM they just launched to hit Austin, Texas, and the Oracle states [[http://www.poisonedminds.com/d/20071030.html "Well, you're in luck there..."]]

* In the middle ages and early modern period it was quite common for the heads of people executed by decapitation to be spiked onto poles etc. and displayed at a city gate or, if the people executed were pirates, at a harbour entrance. A skull of a pirate whose head was displayed that way (according to legend that of the famous pirate Klaus Störtebeker) in the times of the UsefulNotes/HanseaticLeague can be seen in the ''Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte'' in UsefulNotes/{{Hamburg}}.

Compare DeadGuyOnDisplay, HumanHeadOnTheWall, AlasPoorYorick. See also SeveredHeadSports, where the humiliation to the beheaded is taken even further.

* ''Film/AGoodWomanIsHardToFind'': Sarah presents Leo with Tito's severed head.