Conch piercing
| Conch piercing | |
|---|---|
|
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| Other names | Sadhu piercing, Kanphati piercing, Shell piercing |
| location | auricle |
| Jewellery | Ball Closure Ring, Curved Barbell, Barbell, Labret Plug Jewelry Note |
| Healing time | 3–6 months note on healing time |
| ‣ Topic overview | |
A conch piercing is a special piercing through the auricle .
Concept and pronunciation
Based on the term auricle, the name of the piercing comes from the English term for certain species of sea snail from the family of the winged snail , especially from the genus of the fencer , and can be translated as "conch piercing". It is therefore sometimes called a shell piercing.
Valid pronunciations of “Conch” are [ ˈkɒŋk ] with a “k” at the end and [ ˈkɒntʃ ] with a “tsch”. Although the first variant is the more common pronunciation, the second variant has established itself in the piercing scene.
History and culture
Today, the conch piercing is mainly worn from a fashionable point of view in western culture, where it established itself as a rarer variant of the ear hole , especially during the 1990s, alongside tragus , rook , snug , daith and helix piercing . Although it is known as a traditional piercing by some ethnic groups, it has less historical origins than the much more common lobe piercing through the earlobe .
South pacific
From traditions from the South Pacific Cook Island Mangaia , representations with ear modifications are known that are similar to the conch piercing. For example, a drawing from the book Le troisème voyage de Cook by John Rickman from 1785, about the third South Sea voyage of the explorer James Cook , shows an island resident with appropriate earrings. In addition, wooden figures from the Cook Islands from the late 18th / early 19th century have holes in the auricles. The figures are about the so-called "god of fishermen". They are said to have been taken at sea by fishermen for a successful catch.
Congo
Pieces of jewelry in the edge of the ear, such as the helix piercing, or in widened holes in the earlobes are part of the cultural identity of several ethnic groups in Africa. Jewelry made through the inner auricle, as it corresponds to the modern inner conch piercing, is known from the Mangbetu ethnic group from the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo . Pegs made of ivory or monkey bones were inserted into the perforated auricles. Today, however, this form of body modification is rarely found among the Mangbetu.
Auricles in which larger pieces have been cut out of the middle are known from the Makere .
Members of the Mangbetu with jewelry in the inner auricle
Makere with the inner auricle cut out
India
A form of inner conch piercing is known from members of the Gorakhnathis , a Shivaitic Sadhu group , in which particularly large earrings are inserted into the auricles as symbols of faith. This is the so-called Kanphati , which is carried out as part of an initiation ritual and literally means "split ear" (from hindi कन kān , ear and फूटना phu: ṭnā , to split ). The modern conch piercing is therefore also called Sadhu piercing or Kanphati piercing. Both names were established in the early 1990s by the piercer and non-fiction author Blake Perlingieri from San Francisco.
The Gorakhnathis are the only Hindu group with such a decoration ritual. The Kanphati is said to go back to Goraksha , the founder of Hatha Yoga . During the ceremony, a guru slits open both ears with a knife with a double-edged blade and inserts pens made of neem wood into the incised crevice. After the wound has healed, the pins are replaced with rings. The Kanphati is a symbol of the yogi's belief and leads to special powers in the wearer. After the initiation ritual, it is assumed that the rings are worn when conversing, eating or praying. The traditional jewelry of the Gorakhnathis are made from agate , glass or the horn of the rhinoceros .
Variations
The inner conch (inner conch piercing), also called sadhu piercing, sits in the hollow in the middle of the auricle. The outer conch (outer conch piercing), alternatively referred to as the upper sadhu piercing, sits above this hollow and could be described as a deeper helix piercing , which is why conch and helix piercing are often confused with one another.
Inner and outer conch piercings can be worn with a larger diameter. A meat tunnel is usually used for this . However, since the stretching of cartilage tissue can be very painful and requires special patience and care, the desired diameter of the puncture canal is usually punched out with the dermal punch method .
An orbital conch piercing consists of two juxtaposed puncture channels through which a ring is pulled so that half of it is visible in front of and half behind the auricle.
Jewellery
As suitable piercing jewelry for the inner and outer conch in modern piercing studios, a barbell or especially a micro barbell or a ball closure ring is used as an earring with a particularly large diameter. Labret plugs are also suitable for use. With a pierced conch piercing, the jewelry diameter is usually 1.6 millimeters, with the punched variant it is larger according to the hollow needle used.
execution
As with other piercings, the skin area to be pierced is first disinfected . Then the puncture site, usually on the front of the auricle, is marked and pierced with a special needle . Since it is difficult to use one of the conventional piercing pliers to fix the puncture and puncture point, especially with inner conch piercing, a receiving tube is often held against it instead when piercing . Because it is mainly cartilage that is pierced in the auricle , it can be more painful than on parts of the body that are free of cartilage.
Cure and Risks
The cartilage tissue is thicker at this point than, for example, at the edge of the ear, but for anatomical reasons it is less stressed by the jewelry. The healing process is therefore relatively quick compared to other cartilage piercings. With the pierced conch piercing, it usually lasts between three and six months and with the punched variant two to four weeks. Wearing a barbell is more beneficial to healing than a ball closure ring because it puts less leverage on the auricle.
With conch piercing, as with other piercings in the auricle, granulation occurs more often than is the case with piercings through cartilage-free connective tissue. Some piercers recommend using a local antibiotic . When using a barbell, if the piercing is placed in an unfavorable way, there is a risk that the ball on the back of the auricle will touch the skull and thus permanent pressure will be exerted. Theoretically, there is also a risk of facial paralysis in the event of a severe infection if the inflammation affects the facial nerve via the lymph vessels and the inner ear .
The jewelry worn can impair auditory perception , as the jewelry can change the sound incidence due to its nature or completely or partially cover the ear canal . Likewise, with inner conch piercing, wearing earphones that are inserted into the auricle can be uncomfortable or no longer possible.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ conch in the Oxford English Dictionary
- ↑ a b c d About the conch piercing by Paul King
- ↑ Te Rangi Hiroa : Arts and Crafts of the Cook Islands , 1934, page 312 ff.
- ↑ The figure 'Fishermen's god' ( Memento of the original from April 1, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Sainsbury Center For Visual Art
- ^ Angela Fischer: Africa Adorned , 1984, ISBN 978-0-81091823-8 , page 79
- ↑ Shaivas, the followers of Shiva ( Memento of the original from February 16, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b The Inner Conch at piercing-arten.de
- ↑ a b The Outer Conch at piercing-arten.de
- ↑ a b The Inner Conch ( Memento of the original from April 11, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at piercing-magazin.de
- ↑ a b Der Äußere Conch ( Memento of the original from April 11, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at piercing-magazin.de
- ↑ Orbital piercings at piercing-arten.de
- ^ Conch piercing in the Wildcat Piercing ABC
- ↑ Ear Piercing ABC ( Memento of the original from August 8, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. at inkland.com
