The Wari were masters in crafting metal objects and ornaments. Their metal work was incredibly sophisticated. What we are looking at here is an ear ornament with a silver shaft and a disk made of shell. Turquoise and Spondylus shells were used to create brightly coloured mosaic inlays, with wave designs that may have been attached to the disk with a resin adhesive. In the ancient Andes, the size and the materials used for ear ornaments were correlated with the social rank of their wearer. They could be very heavy, requiring a certain counterbalance partially provided by the elongated shaft itself. It is also possible that most of these ornaments were fastened to the headdress, or otherwise attached to the clothing, to take some weight off of the ear itself. These trinkets were not for everyday use, but perhaps designed to be worn at public ceremonies.
Roberto Pimentel Nita