1. Folkloric Dependence:
The bizarre account of the Queen of Sheba lifting her skirt for a glass floor is lifted directly from the Targum Sheni. In the original myth, Solomon uses this optical illusion to check if she has demonic, hairy legs.
2. Disjointed Sanitization:
The author copies the visual motifs but sanitizes the story by removing the "hairy legs" detail. This modification strips the interaction of its narrative purpose, leaving the skirt-lifting scene fragmented and contextless.
The Quran Verse
Surah 27:44
It was said to her, 'Enter the palace.' But when she saw it, she thought it was a body of water and uncovered her shins. [Solomon] said, 'Indeed, it is a palace made smooth with glass.'
Again, this bizarre detail is found only in the Targum Sheni. In the Jewish legend, Solomon wants to see if the Queen of Sheba has hairy legs (associated with demonic origins in folklore), so he tricks her into lifting her skirt by creating a floor of glass that looks like water.
The Quran keeps the "crystal floor" and the "shins" but removes the folkloric explanation (the hairy legs), making the scene feel disjointed. It shows the author was familiar with the visual motifs of the legends but occasionally sanitized them, resulting in a narrative that loses its original symbolic context.