Best Rook Piercing Jewelry Styles: Curved Barbells, J-Curves & Hoops

Erik Dakota invented the rook piercing, whose photos appeared in 1992 in the fourth issue of Body Play. A rook is usually pierced at 16g or 14g and goes through an upper ridge of cartilage called the inferior crus of the antihelix. It is an anatomy-dependent piercing; you must have a pronounced enough ridge and enough space in the ear for the jewelry to rest comfortably.

In terms of jewelry, your options depend on whether the piercing is fully healed or not. This is because they are known to swell a lot after they’re initially pierced. Therefore, the best initial piece of jewelry is a curved barbell.

Curved Barbells

The best rook piercing jewelry style for initial piercings is a curved barbell. This is because they’re the easiest to heal with, as they allow plenty of room for swelling. Curved barbells also have plenty of decorative options.

However, before you want to get too decorative, it’s worth noting that rook piercings are difficult to heal. They can be challenging to clean because getting into such a small, cramped space on your ear is harder. If you opt for a very decorative end for your initial rook piercing jewelry, just know that it can be trickier to heal and maintain. Simpler jewelry is easier to heal with.

We recommend our Internally Threaded Titanium Curved Barbell or our 14KT Gold Internally Threaded Curved Barbell for those who want to start with the most simple jewelry for healing purposes. For those who want more decoration, we recommend our 14KT White Gold Triple Marquise Clear CZ Threadless Curved Barbell or our 14KT White Gold Opalite Prong Curved Barbell.

Once your piercing has fully healed, your options expand.

J-Curves

One option is the J-curve. Shaped like the letter “J,” this design makes the top and bottom ends more visible to viewers. However, J-curves are not the best choice for initial jewelry because its shape makes it prone to getting caught in the channel during insertion. This can cause a lot of irritation and make the piercing more tricky to heal.

However, J-curves make great jewelry options for rook piercings once fully healed. We recommend making your J-curve by purchasing our J Curve internally Threaded Titanium Curved Barbell and then going through our collection of tops and ends to find your perfect pairing.

Hoops

Another option is a cartilage hoop. Hoops don’t work for initial jewelry because they don’t allow enough room for swelling and are more prone to getting bumped around because of how they sit in the ear.

To heal with a hoop initially, it would have to be large enough to account for swelling and go free of being bumped around. That’s why cartilage hoops are better for when your rook piercing has fully healed.

Most people prefer cartilage hoops to sit snuggly in their rook piercings. This doesn’t leave enough room for swelling, which is another reason it is better to wait until the piercing has fully healed.

When it comes to cartilage hoop earrings, there are different types you can choose from, including:

• Seamless rings
• Small diameter clickers
• Hinged segment rings
• Captive bead rings

Since Spring is approaching, some of our favorites for the upcoming season are our 16G Bumblebee Rook Clicker, 16G Floral Rook Clicker, and 16G Purple Opal Flower Rook Clicker.

Overall, these piercings can be super fun, and once they’re fully healed, there are many jewelry options. For more information about rook piercings, read our comprehensive guide.