Lip plate

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A woman from the Sara tribe with two large lip plates.

Lip plates, also known as lip plugs or lip discs, are a form of body modification where gradually larger circular discs (usually from clay) are inserted into a pierced hole in the lower lip, thereby stretching it. Often a lower lip plate is combined with the excision of the two lower front teeth. In some cases a plate is also inserted into the upper lip. In many older sources it is reported that the plate's size is a sign of social or economical importance in some tribes, however, because of natural mechanical attributes of human skin, it seems that the plate's size just depends on the stage of stretching of the lip.

In some tribes, about six months prior to marriage the woman's lip is pierced by her kinswomen, usually around the age of 15-16. ^{[citation needed]}

It is reported that Mursi girls of age 13 to 16 just decide for themselves wether they want to get lip plates or not. The initial piercing is done as an incision of the lower lip of about 2 cm length, and a simple wooden peg is inserted. After the wound has healed, which usually takes 2 or 3 (painful) weeks, the peg is replaced with a slightly bigger one. At a diameter of about 4 cm the first lip plate made of clay is inserted. Every woman crafts her plate by herself and takes pride in including some ornaments. A final diameter of about 10 to 15 cm seems common, although sizes of up to 25 cm are reported and can be seen on old expedition photographs.

Tribes that are known for their traditional lip plates include:

The Mursi of Ethiopia
Surma women of Ethiopia
The Suyá of Brazil
The Sara of Chad

The South American lip plates are nearly always made from wood of some kind, and they often are more plug-shaped than plate-shaped.

In the West, some people, such as members of the Modern Primitive movement have adopted larger-gauge lip piercings, some of which are worn like lip plates.