Okay
Auntie...
I have a question. What's up with the whole earring thing
for men these days? Does it even matter? One
earring, two? Either side? Individual male
preference?? Personally, I thought that maybe when they
started wearing two at a time that they would help us out
of forced traditions and stop making each side match!
 Dear Jane,
In days gone by, portable wealth was important. Banks were not
always available, or worthy of trust, or with a nearby branch if
you happened to be on Crusade or sailing around the Cape of
Africa. And they didn't even have broken ATMs back then. So
having something valuable and close to hand was vital, especial if
you didn't have LOTS of available wealth. Buttons, often made of
precious metals or set with gems, could be sewn to a coat and
removed for trade as needed. Keeping wealth even closer, one has
the option of wearing it bodily. Soldiers who went on Crusade and
sailors who traveled the world were exposed to the fashions and
ways of people who did things very differently than the folks back
home in Europe. This include ritual scarification, tattoos, and
piercings. Some of these fashions (and gems and gold) found their
way back on the bodies or in the bootlegs of the
sailors. A pierced earlobe often meant that the wearer had
sailed around the world or had crossed the equator. In addition,
if a non service member sailor was involved and survived a sinking
ship, they were often seen wearing an earring in the left ear.
There was also a long-held belief that puncturing the earlobe was
beneficial to increasing the acuity of eyesight or of
hearing. It was also a fashion with seafaring gents of the time to
carry enough portable wealth in the form of a gold earring so that
if one happened to die while in a foreign land, there was enough
money for burial, masses said, and notice sent back to family.
Portraits as far back as the 1500's (including a lovely one of Sir
Walter Raleigh, the Captain responsible for the introduction of
tobacco and potatoes to Europeans) show men wearing a single
earring, often with a pearl or ruby. Women did not often wear
earrings at this time, but it became more and more fashionable in
later centuries, and almost always they were worn in pairs. In the
earlier part of the 20th century, only "bad" girls had
pierced ears. (I have two holes in one ear, one in the other. You
do the math...)
As to my opinion--pierced earrings are far more
comfortable than clip-ons. Other than that, I wouldn't assume any
coded messages are being sent by the wearer. Perhaps the wearers
secretly dream of being Knights or Sailors, but the most you
can safely tell is whether or not the wearer is concerned about
coordinating their accessories with their outfit. Of course gold
and silver go with everything, and copper or brass will turn your
lobes a funny color---but hey--if it goes with your outfit, its up
to you!
Love,
Aunt Acid
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