Any Jewellery designer looking into the history of earrings for inspiration will discover a richly chequered cultural past spanning thousands of years. Since 500BC when ancient Persian wall carvings depicted soldiers wearing earrings, they have been worn by men, women and children of different cultures. Earrings have been worn by the rich to demonstrate wealth and by slaves to signify ownership. They have been worn as a good luck charm to protect health and as a handy form of funeral insurance. They have held deep religious significance and been denounced as immoral. Today earrings are more popular than ever before with people of all ages and cultural backgrounds. With the range of materials available, earrings are no longer a status symbol for privileged classes, but can be worn by everyone. Modern craftsmen have the advantage of thousands of yeas of experimentation with designs, precious metals and gemstones, to create uniquely inspired earrings for men, women and children.