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Navel piercing & belly
rings are a fairly modern invention and has rarely
been recorded in primitive cultures; however the belly button
has long been recognised as an erogenous zone, because of
the difference between men's and women's stomachs. Women's
stomachs differ from men's in that they are more rounded
in the lower part, are longer than men's, have a greater
distance between the belly button and genitals, and are
more deeply recessed than men's. These features are often
exaggerated by artists to make women appear more feminine
in paintings. Belly rings are a huge hit!
People were having belly
rings as far back as ancient Egypt. Only those of
high social standing were permitted to have belly button
piercings and navel rings. Pharos and their Royal Families.
The punishment for anyone else with a navel ring, was execution!
If however, a peasant girl was seen to have 'The perfect
belly button', she may be allowed to get a navel piercing,
which would automatically elevate her social standing.
The invention of the Bikini in 1953 caused a big stir because the navel was seen as being sexually provocative because of it's similarity to the female genitals.
"It is easy to pinpoint the moment when body piercing went mainstream. Christy Turlinton came out at a London Fashion show, and in the middle of her navel was a belly button ring! The next day Naomi Campbell showed the world that anything Christy could do, so could she. A gold belly button ring with a small pearl pierced her navel. And then at Isaac Mizrahi's show the two came out together, navel piercing bared and beringed: body piercing as a Supermodel totem" - Suzy Menkes The New York Times September 1994
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