This is an old Ethiopian Mursi Tribe Clay Lip disc, Lip Plate.
The Mursi, are probably the last group in Africa Ethiopia among whom it is still the norm for women to wear large pottery or wooden discs or ‘plates’ in their lower lips. The lip-plate has become the chief visible distinguishing characteristic of the Mursi and made them a prime attraction for tourists. A girl’s lower lip is cut, by her mother or by another woman of her settlement, when she reaches the age of 15 or 16. The cut is held open by a wooden plug until the wound heals, which can take around 3 months.
