Lip Plates & Labrets: A Global History
The labret — an ornament worn through a piercing in the lip — is one of the oldest and most widespread forms of body modification on Earth. Versions of it have been invented independently on at least three continents, some of them more than 8,000 years ago, by cultures that had no contact with one another. From gold serpent ornaments worn by Aztec emperors to the clay plates of Ethiopia's Omo Valley to the status symbols of Pacific Northwest nobility, the lip has been a canvas for meaning across human history. Here's the global story.
A note on approach: this article spans ancient history and living cultural traditions, and we've tried to treat both with accuracy and respect — leaning on archaeological and anthropological sources and flagging where popular claims don't hold up.
First, What Is a Labret?
The word labret refers to any ornament worn in a pierced lip — a broad category that includes small studs, plugs, rods, and the large discs known as lip plates. (Today, "labret" most often refers to a specific lower-lip piercing and the flat-backed jewelry worn in it; historically the term covers the whole family.) What unites them is the lip as the site, and across cultures the meaning has ranged from status and adulthood to beauty, spirituality, and group identity.
Astonishingly Ancient, Astonishingly Widespread
What makes the labret remarkable is how many times humanity invented it independently. Archaeological evidence points to disc and plate labrets emerging separately in:
| Region | Approximate Timeline |
|---|---|
| Africa (present-day Sudan and Ethiopia) | around 6000–5500 BCE |
| Mesoamerica | around 1500 BCE |
| Coastal Ecuador | around 500 BCE |
More broadly, the practice of lip piercing has origins reaching back an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 years, documented across Central Africa, South America, and North America's Pacific Northwest and Arctic regions. These cultures developed the practice on their own, which tells us something striking: the impulse to adorn the lip is close to universal in the human story.
The Aztecs: Gold Labrets of Kings
Some of the most spectacular labrets ever made came from the Aztec Empire of central Mexico. Called tentetl — literally "lip stone" in the Aztec language, Nahuatl — labrets were powerful symbols of nobility and authority, worn by rulers and granted as honors.
The finest were crafted from gold, a material the Aztecs considered sacred, and often shaped as serpents. One surviving masterpiece, now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, depicts a fanged serpent with an articulated, movable tongue that swung as the wearer moved — among the finest Aztec goldwork to survive. A labret was inserted as part of a ruler's accession ceremony and worn both in ritual and into battle, where its wearer was likened to a serpent poised to strike.
There's a poetic detail here: the link between labrets and the nobility may have been reinforced by a link between the nobility and eloquence. The title of the Aztec emperor was huei tlahtoani — "Great Speaker." An ornament worn at the mouth, on the person whose words carried the most weight, is a fitting symbol.
Africa: The Living Tradition of the Lip Plate
Africa is home to the lip-plate traditions most familiar to the wider world today. Among the Mursi and Surma (Suri) of Ethiopia's lower Omo Valley, a young woman's lower lip is pierced — traditionally by her mother — roughly six to twelve months before marriage, and progressively stretched with larger clay or wooden plates. The plate became the most recognizable marker of Mursi and Suri identity.
The lip plate appears across the continent in varied forms. Among the Makonde of Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique, a plate was traditionally worn in the upper lip; the Sara and Lobi peoples wore plates in both upper and lower lips. In many African traditions the lip plate is paired with the removal of lower front teeth to accommodate it.
One important correction: it's widely claimed that a woman's plate size set her "bride price." Anthropologists who worked closely with the Mursi have challenged this — the final size often reflects the natural stretching of the skin and the wearer's own wishes rather than a fixed value, and marriage arrangements were frequently made before the lip was even cut. We explore these living African traditions in more depth in our guide to African tribal piercing traditions.
The Pacific Northwest: Labrets as Rank and Womanhood
Far to the north, among the Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America, labrets have a history stretching back at least 5,000 years. Among the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian, labrets came in more recent centuries to be worn especially by high-ranking women, where they signaled social maturity and a girl's eligibility for marriage. The installation of a girl's first labret was an important milestone, celebrated with a lavish feast.
The practice ran so deep in the region that it shaped language: the Russian name for the Tlingit, Koloshi, derives from an Alutiiq word for labret. Labrets here were crafted from stone, bone, shell, and ivory, and among some groups the materials — like prized dentalium shells — were themselves markers of wealth and trade.
South America: Plugs and Rods of the Amazon
In the Amazon basin and beyond, several peoples — including the Zo'é of Brazil, along with Guaraní, Tupí, and other groups — wear stretched-lip ornaments that are plug- or rod-shaped rather than plate-shaped, sometimes called tembetá. These traditions are a useful reminder that lip modification was never confined to one continent or one form: it arose in many places, in many shapes, with many meanings.
From Ancient Symbol to Modern Style
The modern labret piercing most people know today — a small lower-lip piercing with flat-backed jewelry — entered Western fashion through the punk and body-modification subcultures of the 1970s, largely detached from the ritual and status meanings it carried in Indigenous cultures. Today it's one of the more popular lip piercings, worn for personal style. (Our labret piercing guide covers the modern version.)
That journey — from a sacred Aztec accession rite or a Tlingit coming-of-age feast to a fashion choice — is worth pausing on. When you wear a labret today, you're taking part, knowingly or not, in one of the oldest continuous human practices there is. Understanding its history doesn't take anything away from wearing it as a modern style; if anything, it adds depth.
One Lip, Ten Thousand Years
Few body modifications can claim the labret's combination of antiquity and reach. Invented independently in ancient Africa, Mesoamerica, and the Americas; rendered in gold for emperors and in clay for brides; a marker of rank, beauty, maturity, and identity — the pierced lip has carried human meaning for as long as we have records, and longer. For the wider story of how piercing developed across cultures, see our History of Body Piercing, and for the parallel story of stretched ears, our history of ear stretching.
Q
What is the difference between a labret and a lip plate?
"Labret" is the broad term for any ornament worn in a pierced lip — including studs, plugs, rods, and plates. A "lip plate" is a specific large disc form. So all lip plates are labrets, but not all labrets are plates. Today "labret" usually refers to a particular lower-lip piercing.
Q
How old are lip plates and labrets?
Very old. Archaeological evidence shows disc and plate labrets were invented independently in Africa around 6000–5500 BCE, in Mesoamerica around 1500 BCE, and in coastal Ecuador around 500 BCE, with lip-piercing practices reaching back an estimated 8,000–10,000 years.
Q
Did the Aztecs wear labrets?
Yes. Aztec rulers and nobility wore labrets called tentetl, often crafted from gold in the shape of serpents. They were part of a ruler's accession ceremony and symbols of authority — a famous gold example survives in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Q
Is it true that lip plate size determined a woman's dowry?
That's a common claim, but anthropologists who studied the Mursi have challenged it. Plate size often reflects how far the lip has naturally stretched and the wearer's own preference, and marriages were frequently arranged before the lip was cut.
Q
Who wore labrets in the Pacific Northwest?
Among the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian, labrets were worn especially by high-ranking women in more recent centuries, marking social maturity and marriage eligibility. A girl's first labret was celebrated with a feast, and the practice goes back at least 5,000 years in the region.
This article is for educational and historical purposes only and is not medical advice or a how-to guide. Lip stretching and modification carry real risks and should never be attempted without expert guidance. For any piercing of your own, consult a professional piercer.