Jezebel's reception into Samaria was hailed as one of the wonders of the world. Drenched in the exotic colours of the East, the spectacle of Ahab's bride and her triumphant progress to the Ivory Palace was never to be forgotten.

Yet even then, amid the cheering voices, there were those who seemed to sense a dreadful power in Jezebel's stately bearing. Her beauty brought her praise and admiration from all who served her. But as Thamar, her half-sister had foreseen, the seeds of Jezebel's glory were later to bear a terrible fruit. For her evil and tyranny would one day earn her the title of the wickedest woman in the world.