Piercings are cool, sexy and in today’s society indicate a form of rebellion, but of the times when a piercing was a way to social acceptance, status and connection with higher powers.

From Bones and wood, to steel and plastic, from Africa and India to Asia and South America, the culture of this form of body modification spans tens of thousands of years and tells an interesting story of beauty and social standards are.

While most people today who pierce their ear, tongue or lips don’t really intend to stretch that into oblivion and walk around with wooden plates stretching their lower lip to the size a baby’s head, there were times and there are tribes where this was The Way to ensure your place at the head of a table.

Human race is young, tribal and to a great extend still primitive. We still rely on external factors to boost our self-esteem and social position, and in the times before BMWs and mobile phones, before expensive suits and Luis Vuitton handbags, we used body scarring, piercings and tattoos to communicate our worth and appeal to others.

Piercings, like any other form of body mods and arts is found in this tribal ancestry of humans.

Shamans and witch doctors used it fend the evil spirits and to increase their powers. Women used it to appear more feminine and to ensure easier and less dangerous birth, and men often showed their status as warriors and / or hunters.

As we moved more towards the civilized and industrial age, and especially with the expansion of monotheism and departure of ritualistic paganism and nature worship, we pushed these forms of expression onto the margins of society.

Yet, our nature is not much different than it was some hundred thousand years ago, and piercing along with many other forms of body mods are today experiencing revival on a global scale.