And they put his armour in the house of their gods, and fastened his head in the temple of Dagon.
Put his armour in the house of their gods. It was common among the pagan to vow to a national or favourite deity, that, in the event of a victory, the armour of the enemy's king, or of some eminent leader, should be dedicated to him as an offering of gratitude. Such trophies were usually suspended on the pillars of the temple. Thus Virgil ('AEneid,' 11:, 5) describes the temple in which King Latinus received the messengers of Aeneas:
`Hung on the pillars all appears A row of trophies, helmets, shields, and spears, And solid bars, and axes keenly bright, And naval beaks, and chariots seized in fight.'
(See Tacitus, 'Annales,' 2:, 22; Curtius, 8:, 1. cf. 3:, 288; Ovid, 'Ars Armator.,' 2:, 744.)
Fastened his head in the temple of Dagon - (see the note at 1 Samuel 5:2.) This temple continued until it was destroyed in the time of the Maccabees (1Ma 10:82-85). The trunk or headless corpse was affixed to the wall of Beth-shan (1 Samuel 31:10).