Earring with latching mechanism

A latching mechanism for an earring having two opposed ends comprising:

• a) a post affixed to one of said opposed ends in a direction which is substantially perpendicular to a surface of said one opposed end, said post including a notch adjacent to its distal end;
• b) a spring;
• c) a post engagement element affixed to a second one of said opposed ends, said second one of said opposed ends including a cup forming a first chamber having a circular cross section for receiving and retaining one end of said spring, said post engagement element including a catch disposed adjacent to one end of said post engagement element for engaging said notch;
• d) said post engagement element including a second chamber having a circular cross section disposed adjacent to a second end of said post engagement element for receiving and retaining a second end of said spring and an opening disposed between said one end and said second end of said post engagement element, said opening and a pin cooperating to pivotally attach said post engagement element to said second one of said opposed ends;
• wherein said spring operates to apply a biasing force on said post engagement element in a first direction for enabling said notch and said catch to engage and be retained in said engaged state;
• wherein a force applied to said post engagement element sufficient to overcome said biasing force to compress said spring causes said post engagement element to rotate in a second direction around said pin and disengage said notch and said catch.