A trend that has probably spanned the centuries.
Turkish archaeologists have discovered evidence that men and women in the Neolithic period wore facial piercings.
Until now, many objects, including some resembling earrings, had been documented among Neolithic or late Stone Age peoples in several places in Southwest Asia, but none of these objects had not been directly associated with the parts of the body where they could have been worn.
This Monday, March 11, the analysis of excavations carried out at the archaeological site of Boncuklu Tarla (Turkey) revealed that certain ornaments were found near the ears and mouths of the occupants of the graves, suggesting that they could have been used as an ear and lower lip piercing.
Indeed, tooth wear on the lower incisors of these remains from around 11,000 years ago resembles known wear patterns caused by the abrasion of a type of piercing called a labret, often worn under the bottom lip.
A ritual during the transition to adulthood?
This is the first time that facial piercings among Neolithic peoples of Southwest Asia have been directly linked to the body parts they pierced, the scientists reported in the journal Antiquity.
For the researchers, there is no doubt, their discoveries confirm that this practice was already common at the beginning of the Neolithic period.
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While people of all ages were buried at Boncuklu Tarla, these ornaments were only found near the remains of adults.
This may suggest that these jewels were not worn by children, and that wearing them was one of the rituals of the passage to adulthood, the researchers analyze.
“They had masses and masses of beads and they made complicated things with beads,” study co-author Dr. Emma L. Baysal, an associate professor of archeology at the University of Texas, told CNN. Ankara (Turkey).
She cites in particular necklaces, bracelets, animal-shaped pendants and even decorations that could be sewn onto clothing.
“Inserted into the flesh or cartilage of the ear”
Some ornaments found have long stems and a “nail-like appearance” and were likely worn “inserted into the flesh or cartilage of the ear,” the study said.
Others, those resembling labrets, have shorter, more bulbous stems, and appear more suited to the lips.
Antiquity Publications Ltd.
As today, these jewels were certainly used to express one's identity or represent one's community.
“When you put on earrings, you can't see them.
You do it for the image you project to others.
And I don't think that has changed in these thousands of years.
It’s a way of identifying with our ancestors and telling ourselves that they were like us,” concludes Emma L. Baysal.