Posted by Nigel Fletcher-Jones on Facebook >> https://www.facebook.com/NigelinEgypt
“Earrings only came into general use in ancient Egypt from about 1650 BC. They were worn first by women and then later by men. By about 1400 BC even the king had pierced ears, though he was not usually depicted wearing earrings.
There were multiple shapes of earring including simple hoops, spirals, and barrel-shapes, but the most elaborate consisted of a stud-capped tube screwed through the ear lobe into a second tube.
The earring below was found in the unused tomb of General (later King) Horemheb (r. 1323-1295 BC) at Saqqara, not far south of Giza. It was probably made during the reign of Akhenaten (c. 1352-1336 BC) or his son Tutankhamun (c.1336-1327).
One of the two rings through which the screw passed at the top is now missing.
The main body of the earring is made of two circular bands decorated with a V-shaped design picked out in gold and blue glass. The central image shows the king as a sphinx wearing a crown. Soldered gold granule rings form a rim—all the gaps were filled with coloured glass paste. Pendants probably hung from the five bottom protrusions.
From my ‘Ancient Egyptian Jewelry’ (photo Araldo De Luca/Archivo White Star).”