[Loch-Ruadh] Why did sailors wear earrings? (Alaric? Can you answer?)

[Jane Sitton]

Greetings.

Another email list I read has come up with a question:

Why did sailors wear earrings?  Here are some of the theories:

#1.  To pay for a Christian burial, should the body wash up on shore (though
I would think the ears would be among the first parts to be nibbled off by
fish, sorry for the visual)

#2.  To indicate the sailor was married, and worn on the left ear (closer to
the heart), as a ring on one's hand could get caught in the rigging

#3.  To indicate the sailor had been past Cape Horn (left ear) or the Cape
of Good Hope (right ear)

Alaric, can you provide any enlightenment on this topic?

Many thanks,
Madelina