Decollation

noun

1. In conchology, the removal—by death, growth, or accident—of the upper whorls of a spiral shell after the animal has ceased to occupy them. See cut in middle column.
2. The act of beheading; decapitation; the state of one beheaded.
3. Specifically In surgery, the removal of the head of the child in cases of difficult parturition.
4. The act of beheading or state of one beheaded; -- especially used of the execution of St. John the Baptist.
5. A painting representing the beheading of a saint or martyr, esp. of St. John the Baptist.