Piercing History
Piercing and the ancients
Many people see bodypiercing as a modern phenomenon. It has, in fact, existed for thousands of years. Many of the older cultures used piercing as an important stage of the peoples spiritual growth. When piercing was performed within tribal societies it was usually a "coming of age" ritual that was performed on young boys, to signify that they were now considered to be adult and so could take a wife and join in the hunt for food. Piercing was used to help put fears into perspective and to increase confidence and self esteem. Many of the tribal piercings signified rank or status.
Many of the piercings that we perform today had deeply spiritual and social significance in older societies:
- The Ancient Mayan's King ( S. America ) would pierce his tongue every morning as part of the relentless battle between night and day. It was believed that if he didn't do this then the sun would not rise and it would remain forever night. When the sun rose it proved that he was still fit to be ruler. The mayan's even had their own piercing god.
- The septum piercing was often believed to celebrate life itself, as it sits where the breath enters the body, and would usually be performed on the chieftan.
- There is still a tribe in Borneo who perform the "Am Phallang" on young boys. If the boy doesn't agree to this piercing he wont be able to take a wife and would be ostracised from the tribe.
- The hafada piercings, either side of the scrotum, were performed on Arabian boys once the testicles had dropped into place, to ensure that they could not go back again.
- The ancient Egyptians regarded the navel very highly and often made sculptures of particularly well formed ones. The navel piercing was used as a sign of rank and only the Royal Princesses were allowed to wear navel jewellery. Any "commoners" that had the audacity to pierce their navel would be thrown to the alligators in the Nile.( The navel has become the most popular of the modern piercings and I have been told by many of the girls that have this piercing that it is a particularly empowering piercing.)
- Roman soldiers would have their nipples pierced as a sign of their virility. There is a train of thought that believes many of the 'brooches' that are being unearthed during archeological digs could actually be nipple jewellery. Some of the Centurions and Legionnaires used the piercing to hold their cloaks on in the cold, british winters. It is reported that they may have 'stolen' the idea from the ancient Britons.
Royal piercing
Even our own Royal family have their share of piercees. There is a portrait in the National Gallery of Catherine the Great where her nipple rings can be seen through her clothes. It is commonly believed that Queen Victoria's Consort, Albert, wore a dressing ring through the end of his penis in order to tie it to his thigh to keep a smooth line in the fashionably tight trousers of the day. This gives rise to the name of that piercing today. Even the Queens Grand-daughter, Zara Phillips, has her tongue pierced.
Modern Piercing
There has always been an 'underground' piercing movement, but the rise in the postmodernist movement of the 'Modern Primitives' saw a rise in interest in ancient rituals, shamanism and Magick. Fakir Musaphar is credited as the original founder of the movement in 1947. Modern Primitivism is seen as a symbiotic relationship between the past and the future. Taking the Magick and rituals from ancient times and blending with futuristic science and technologies. 'Modprims' are very aware of the forces that govern our universe and ourselves in a way that has become lost during our rise to become 'civilised'. We have become, somewhat, psychically numb - not knowing true pleasure or pain and missing out on a whole range of neurochemicals that blur the edges between the two. Mastery over passion, suffering and pain instead of suppression is the key to the evolution of mankind. Modern primitives believe in the interconnectedness of all things and in 'Gaia', the universal energy within the universe that joins us all with everything else. Connecting with that energy whilst still being a part of our modern society is a dificult balancing act that can be achieved through the use of mystical drugs like LSD at raves or by using the body's natural opiates - Endorphines - during ritual.
Modern body piercing is assumed to have developed within the gay S and M community in Los Angeles during the late 1960's by the founder of "Gauntlet", Jim Ward. He worked out of his home before opening the first ever piercing studio in West Hollywood in 1978. Gauntlet manufactured it's own jewellery and set up a mail order business, selling it's creations all over the world. The 'barbell','circular barbell' and 'ball closure ring' were all invented by gauntlet technicians.
As well as Jim, the staff at gauntlet included Michaela Grey, who founded the Association of Professional Piercers and Elayne Angel, who was the first person ever to be certified as a 'Master Piercer'. Many of our top piercers today have been trained using the techniques devised by these pioneers.
Jim Ward corresponded with Doug Malloy and Alan Oversby to develop techniques and technology used in modern bodypiercing. Alan Oversby, otherwise known as 'Mr Sebastian' is remembered as the pioneering force for piercing within Europe. He was the inventor of the nape piercing, which is now known as the 'Oversby' in his memory. Again, he was an active member of the gay S and M community.
He was charged, with 15 other men, as part of the 'Operation Spanner' case in 1987, when police recieved a video which they believed showed 'depraved torture'. The judge in the case would not accept that the men were consenting and Alan was forced to plead guilty to assault (performing a genital piercing on a client), sending obscene materials through the post (pictures of piercings) and using anaesthetic without a licence.
The 'Spanner' case was an important test case to determine what kind of body modification and SM practices would be legally allowed. The judges argument was "A person cannot legally consent to recieve an act that will seriously harm them". As a result of this case the Law Commission is investigating consensual SM practices. In effect, branding, scarification, tongue splitting and implants are actually considered to be illegal practices within the UK.
During the late 1970's and early 1980's the 'Punk' movement hijacked piercing as a way to show non-conformism and anarchy. This wasn't professional piercing in any way. Usually a teen would push a safety pin through his mates eyebrow or lip etc. after heating it with a lighter. (It's surprising how many piercers these days cite those experiences as professional piercing experience.)
Piercing in the 21st Century
Very few of the people who are into piercing today are into S and M, so why is piercing even more popular than ever in our Global Community?
Even though we consider ourselves to be more civilised, we have seen a huge rise in the popularity of 'modern primitivism' and many psychologists and anthropologists have worked to find the reason for this.
When you ask people why they like to be pierced, most people struggle to answer. I have spent many years trying to find the answer to this question and have spoken to many thousands of people. There are as many reasons for getting a piercing as there are people that get them.
I have learnt that piercing is inevitable in a multicultural society, where we constantly strive to understand where our roots are so that we can know ourselves.
In our society many of the rituals that we had are now gone, and important phases in our lives go unnoticed. We see the world as being one whole community instead of the like minded groups (or tribes) that we once knew. Many of us feel alone and isolated. For many of us, Piercing is a way to show that we are again members of a wider, like minded community.
It is also a way of showing that we have moved through important phases in our lives. I have a new piercing when I move into a new era in my life or to signify a spiritual step that I have taken, and I know that most of the people that come to my studio feel the same way.
It's not a competition to see who has the most piercings. Each piercing changes the way energy flows around your system and too many is NOT a good thing. We (modern man ) are the only social group in the history of piercing that have OVER pierced ourselves. It's worth remembering that piercing is about finding a path through which causes the least amount of harm. This is a tennet that should be carried through to your everyday life.
I believe that piercing is a way to bring together our physical and spiritual selves in order that we may again learn to control the one thing that we can - ourselves.
Piercing teaches us about how our bodies heal and shows us the miracle that is healing. We learn patience through the healing process and learn tolerance for those who have different lifestyles. We can use piercing to get in touch with our instincts and connect to our basic, natural, selves. I see piercing as an important step on the road to self discovery and personal growth, and I know I'm not the only one because I see many thousands of people that feel the same way.
Humanity is not DEVOLVING back to primitivism but is, in fact, EVOLVING away from the materialistic and selfish into a more spiritual era.
Human evolution depends on each and every one of us being in tune with ourselves and our instincts, because our instincts guide us on our journey and help us to realise the part that we play in the "Grand Plan".
Nature has built into us the ability to achieve our purpose in life , as long as we are in touch with those instincts and are brave enough to do what those instincts tell us to do. Piercing allows us to connect with the well of inner strength that we all have, at a time when we are prepared and ready. Once you have connected with your inner strength and beaten those fears you KNOW how strong you really are.