Egyptian and Body Piercings
Body Piercings has been around for ages, the earliest known remains of a human that was pierced is over 5,000 years old. The body had gauged plugs in his ears. Ear plugs could possibly be the oldest form of body jewelry. Only the pharaoh could have his navel pierced, any one else who tried to get a belly button ring could be executed. Almost all well off Egyptians wore earrings to show wealth and accent beauty. Body piercings are also mentioned in the Bible. In the Old Testament body jewelry is considered a mark of beauty and wealth, mainly for Bedouin and nomadic tribes. Body Jewelry was often given as a bridal gift. Piercings were also a sign of status and attractiveness in Biblical times.
Romans and Body Piercings
Romans almost always had a purpose for their body piercings. They used
body jewelry for many reasons. Roman centurians pierced their nipples to signify their strength and virility. Julius Caesar pierced his nipples to show his strength and his identification with his soldiers. Gladiators were pierced through the head of their penis for two reasons. The ring could be tied back with leather to prevent serious injury in battle. Gladiators were almost always slaves, a large ring or bar could prevent them from having sex without owner permission.
Various Tribes and Body Piercings
At the same time across the ocean Aztecs, Mayans and some American Indians practiced tongue piercing as part of their religious rituals. They thought it brung them closer to their gods and was a type of ritual blood-letting. As warrior tribes the Aztecs and Mayans also pierced their septums to appear fiercer to their enemies. Tribes in New Guinea and the Solomon Islands also practiced this technique. Usually bone, tusks, and feathers were used in this practice.
Centuries later, French fur trappers in Washington State encountered American Indian tribes who had bones through their septum and called them the Nez Perce, meaning “Pierced Noses” in French. In Central and South America, lip labrets were popular because women with pierced lips were considered more attractive. The holes were often stretched to enormous sizes to emphasize the lips as much as possible. The Aztecs and Maya also wore lip labrets of gold and jade, many elaborately carved into mythical or religious figures. As the dark ages came interest in piercings began to die down. For a few centuries, Western cilization abandoned the practic. During the Renaissance interest in body piercings began to pick up again.
New Interest In Body Piercings
The site of a sailor with a gold or brass ring became common because they were convinced that piercing one ear would improve their long-distance site. It was also said that if a sailor washed ashore after a shipwreck, the finder would keep the gold ring in exchange for a proper Christian burial. Both religious and superstitious, sailors normally spent a lot for a large gold earring to reduce their bets. During the Renaissance and Elizabethan eras men became much more fasion conscious. Almost any male member of nobility would have at least one earring. Large pearl drops and diamond studs were ways to show your wealth and standing in the community. Not wanting to be shown up by men, women began to wear plunging necklines. The Queen of Bavaria introducing the most outrageous mostly below the waste. Women also began piercing their nipples to show off their
Body Jewelry. They also wore chains and stands of pearl between the two. Men and women both found that nipple piercings were delightful playthings in bed, adding sensitivity, giving visual and tactile stimulation.
The next spike of interest was during the Victorian age. Prince Albert, future husband of Queen Victoria, was said to have the penis piercing that is named after him. The piercing could then be attached to a hook on the inside of one pant leg and tucked safely and neatly between the legs to give a clean look in the tight fitting pants of that time. Men and women were now getting a variety of body piercings purely for the pleasurable sexual effects. In the 1890's some doctors suggested nipple piercings improved conditions for breastfeeding.
New Age Body Piercings
In the 1960's teens traveling to India from America found new interest in nose rings. In India, women had been wearing nostril rings since the sixteenth century. This was a traditional form of accepted adornment and was often linked to their earring by a chain. The teens thought the nostril rings were rebellious and brung back the idea of nose piercings to the U.S.. After nose piercings were brought to the U.S, interest in body piercings of all kinds quickly caught on during the 1980’s and 1990’s. A variety of piercings could now be seen in celebrities, sports stars and singers. Now body piercings are found in high school students and moms.