Portrait of a young Mursi mother with her baby (Ethiopia).
The Mursi people are an ethnic group in southwestern Ethiopia, known for their distinctive customs and traditions.
One of the most recognizable aspects of Mursi culture is the practice of wearing lip plates, a circular ornament that is inserted into a pierced hole in the lower lip.
Women of the Mursi tribe may have their lips cut at the age of 15 or 16. A small clay plate is then inserted into the lip. Through the years, larger plates are inserted into the lip causing it to stretch.
The practice of cutting and stretching the lower lip could be originated as a deliberate disfigurement, designed to make women and girls less attractive to slave traders.
Like other forms of body decoration and alteration found the world over, today the lip plate worn by Mursi women is best seen as an expression of social adulthood and reproductive potential.
Every woman crafts her plate by herself and takes pride in including some ornamentation.
Links: linktr.ee/roberto_pazzi
Instagram: www.instagram.com/roberto_pazzi_photo