Types of skull jewelry every fashionista ought to know about
Skull fashion is all the rage in the 21 century. We wear skull rings, pendants, and earrings with great pleasure because this is such a dramatic symbol. It shocks and inspires, it frightens but gives hope, it represents death, and at the same time, life.
Although skulls take a pride of place in popular culture, not every person is willing to put on jewelry featuring this image. Many people simply don’t understand its meaning and therefore, they are scared of it. Yes, a skull is a physical shape of death but this is just one of its many facets. This symbol stands for:
– intelligence (because it houses the brain, the center of mind);
– eternal life (because flesh deteriorates but bones and skulls don’t);
– resurrection (because the cross Jesus died on stood on Adam’s head; crucifixes are often depictured with a skull at its base);
– sexual energy (in Elizabethan England, prostitutes wore rings depicting skulls without lower jawbone).
Every culture creates its own meaning for skulls. If you dig deeper, you will see that this symbol was respected and worshiped around the world. Only the ignorant ones are afraid of it because they see only negativity, knowing nothing about all its many-sidedness.
If you’re going to purchase skull rings, you have so many options to choose from. Skulls are depicted as feminine and masculine, intimidating and inspiring.
Sugar Skull
It is the most artistic and vibrant of all skulls. The Mexican festival the Day of the Dead honors the goddess of death La Calavera Catrina, a skeletal woman wearing a wreath of flowers. Her look inspires unique makeup that blends the image of a skull with flowers, swirls, and gems. Thus, the ornate skull became the symbol of the Day of the Dead. The traditional treats for this holiday are sugar skulls, cookies adorned with colored glaze. At some point, the image of Calavera and sugar skulls merged and now, any Mexican-style skull is called a Sugar Skull.
If you like the symbolism of death but want to emphasize its life-affirming side, then sugar skull rings will be a great reinforcement for your style.
Jolly Roger
This symbol has many names – Totenkopf, death’s head, Jolly Roger, but it representation remains the same – it is a skull and crossbones. For centuries, it warned about danger and death. It is this symbol that you see on bottles with toxic substances and high voltage equipment. But most commonly, it is associated with piracy. The look of death’s head on a black flag was terrifying for those who conquered the seas.
But this symbol has a more positive meaning. When it became a military emblem in Prussia, it acquired the significance of courage, spunk, and masculinity of men who fight for the freedom of their homeland.
So, when a guy puts a Jolly Roger ring on his finger, does he really want to ooze the vibes or danger or show how bold and tough he is? The answer is ‘both’.
Grim Reaper
Death is something that cannot be touched, something that has no physical representation. It has always been difficult for people to perceive things and phenomena that did not have a physical form. It is not for nothing that every phenomenon was attributed to the action of some god. This god was portrayed as a person or an animal, or both, to make it easier for people to understand the world they lived in. The same thing happened with death. It physical body is the Grim Reaper. In some cultures, in particular Slavic, it is also known as the old woman with a scythe.
The image of a skeleton in a robe and with a scythe as a personification of death appeared in the Middle Ages. Back then, as you know, Europe was suffering from plague and other deadly diseases. Medieval healers wore black but they could do little to help people. The appearance of people in black robes meant that death was near. As for the scythe or sickle, these tools were associated with both fertility and death in the ancient world. Egyptian God Osiris was responsible for fertility and at the same time, he was the ruler in the kingdom of the dead. One of his tools was a sickle. God Saturn from Ancient Rome held ears of corn in one hand and a sickle in the other. Such images have a dual nature – on the one hand, ears of corn as a symbol of life, on the other hand, an instrument that reaps them and ends their life.
While the skull has two opposite sides – one for death and the other for life, the Grim Reaper is a monosemantic symbol associated only with the end of life.
Animal Skulls
Many people opt out of wearing skull jewelry because they associate the skull with their own death. If you are one of them, you might want to try trinkets featuring animal skulls instead of human ones. Their visual impact is as powerful as that of a traditional skull but they can add extra meaning to your look. For example, a skull of a bull with magnificent horns can speak of your virility, sexual energy, and strength.
