Paambadam is an ear ring worn by elderly women in South Indian States such as Tamil Nadu & Kerala.
Designed in the shape of a snake hood, with two balls, two knobs, a square piece and a tongue pieced together, the gold coated ear rings weigh about 50 g each.
Paambadam in Tamil means the hood of the snake(paambin padam).
The sheer weight of a paambadam enlarges the ear lobe, which has to be pierced with a special knife for gradual expression.
Paambadam would be worn with one or two others of similar size and weight, pulling down and stretching the earlobe considerably. The remarkable semi-abstract design actually incorporates animal forms, showing the head of a snake.
Currently due to more modernisation, such earrings are not worn.
References
Paambadam Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA