The art of body modification is not new by , in fact it has origins steeped in the traditions of many ancient cultures.
In Mayan hieroglyphics, dating from 709 BC appears "Jaguar Protector" Lord of the blood of Yaxchilan. In these hieroglyphs and drawings, see the "Rite of Blood" practiced by his wife Lady Xoc, who pierces the tongue of her husband. Perhaps this ritual is old and has to do with the origins of body modification such as tongue piercing, as we know it today.
In many tribes of Africa (Sara, Lobi, Kirdi, Masai) drilling is a very common practice. There is a tradition that unmarried girls begin to enlarge their lips when they are engaged. This process takes the entire courtship until the wedding. It is the promise that made a clay dish that will gradually change for the larger one. The larger the plate, the higher the dowry that the groom's family paid the family of the bride.
The young African tribes Dogon, Kudi, and Lobi have pierced ears, nose and lip as ornaments that identify her tribe and that protect against evil spirits.
Pokot women use lip rings when they marry, a practice that is also made by men and women of Turkana. Some Amazonian tribesmen use lip rings to demonstrate their status, the elderly have enlarged holes and expansions that increase each year.
From the time of the inquisition and the Council of Trent in particular, some religious communities have used banding as a method of genital chastity and expiation of guilt. Placing certain types of padlocks in the fraenum to prevent intercourse. A special punishment was the Franey Cage, with a chain tied in the fraenum to a second hole in the base of the penis to prevent masturbation.
Young Arabs have a hole in the left side of his scrotum used to keep the testicles from the body again. This practice originated in North Africa. Female genital piercings later developed and are used as a form of discipline.
