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A history of tattooingKings and commoners. Sailors and prisoners. Tribesmen and sweethearts. All have shared one thing: the art of the tattoo.
Evidence from ancient Egypt, Greenland, Siberia, and New Zealand shows how truly global the tattooer's art is - and how old. In fact, tattooing had existed for thousands of years before England's Captain Cook encountered it in the South Pacific in 1769. Merchant and naval seamen soon spread the art to Europe and America. But while its meaning has varied from people to people and from place to place, tattooing has most often served as a sign of social status, as a mark of one's passage through life, or simply as a way to beautify the body.
Once regarded in the West as frightening and repulsive, the tattoo has enjoyed great popularity in our own culture in recent years. Everywhere we look today - movies, advertisements, television-are signs that people of all walks of life appreciate and practice the art of the tattoo.Origin of Tattooing
Believe it or not, some scientists say that certain marks on the skin of the Iceman, a mummified human body dating from about 3300 B.C., are tattoos. If that's true, these markings represent the earliest known evidence of the practice. Tattoos found on Egyptian and Nubian mummies date from about 2000 B.C., and classical authors mention the use of tattoos in connection with Greeks, ancient Germans, Gauls, Thracians and ancient Britons.
Tattooing was rediscovered by Europeans when exploration brought them into contact with Polynesians and American Indians. The word tattoo comes from the Tahitian word tattau, which means "to mark," and was first mentioned in explorer James Cook's records from his 1769 expedition to the South Pacific. Because tattoos were considered so exotic in European and U.S. societies, tattooed Indians and Polynesians drew crowds at circuses and fairs during the 18th and 19th centuries.Tattooed Mummies
In October, 1991, a five thousand year old tattooed man made the headlines of newspapers all over the world when his frozen body was discovered on a mountain between Austria and Italy. He had apparently been hunting and was caught in a snowstorm as he tried to return home. Together with the body were clothing, a bow and arrows, a bronze ax and flint for making fire.
"I don't like superlatives," said Professor Konrad Spindler of Innsbruck University, but this is the only body of a Bronze Age man found in a glacier, and certainly the best preserved corpse of that period ever found." The skin is of great interest because it bears several tattoos: a cross on the inside of the left knee, six straight lines 15 centimeters long above the kidneys and numerous parallel lines on the ankles. Spindler stated that the position of the tattoo marks suggests that they were probably applied for therapeutic reasons.
Instruments that were probably used for tattooing during the Upper Paleolithic (10,000 BC to 38,000 BC) have been discovered at several archaelogical sits in Europe. Typically these instruments consist of a disk made of clay and red ochre together with sharp bone needles that are inserted into holes in the top of the disk. The disk served as a reservoir and source of pigment, and the needles were used to pierce the skin. Clay and stone figures with engraved designs which probably represent tattooing have been found together with such instruments.The Iceman
In 1992, at the very border of Austria and Italy, high up in the Alp Mountains, the body of a man was found, and as they realized that he was more than 5000 years old, they realized they had found a sensation. He had been under ice for all those years, so his body, clothes and equipment was extraordinarily well preserved.
He was tattooed! In all 58 tattoos has been counted on his body. His tattoos were only simple dots and little lines.
That he was tattooed, was of course not a coincidence. It was probably totally normal for people at his time to be tattooed.
Since the tattoos does not represent anything - like animals and the like, speculation has been made as to their meaning. The truth will never be found, but theories and speculations will be made!The Scythians
Just after the Second World War, archeologists excavated the first of a long row of graves in the Altai Mountains of Southern Siberia.
These graves had been full of permanently frozen ice, so everything in them was perfectly preserved.
Within grave number two, the archeologists found a well preserved chieftain with some fantastic tattoos. These are the oldest known picture-tattoos.
The Chieftains Tattoos are representing different totem- and game animals.
They are all done in a very distinct style, which is repeated in anything else that they made at the time. When they were carving wood, leather, metalwork, jewelry, felt applications, embroidery, weaving, etc etc. they used saw things in the same way. You may see some of their handicrafts here.
This is something that is the same all over the world, and also in other times. People use the same ideas and the same way of expressing themselves in all kinds of media.
The Scythians are also very interesting for us in Scandinavia, because some hundred years later the Vikings met with the Scythians. The Vikings traveled up the Russian rivers and met with the Scythians, and the Scythians themselves have been all the way to Europe to plunder and ravage.
That way the Scythians' way of seeing things influenced the way the Vikings worked their crafts - and tattoos.Early Tattooing Methods
An amazing variety of tattooing methods developed in different cultures. In North and South America, many Indian tribes routinely tattooed the body or the face by simple pricking, and some tribes in California introduced color into scratches. Many tribes of the Arctic and Subarctic, mostly Inuit, and some people in eastern Siberia, made needle punctures through which a thread coated with pigment (usually soot) was drawn underneath the skin. In Polynesia and Micronesia, pigment was pricked into the skin by tapping on a tool shaped like a small rake.
The Maori people of New Zealand, who are world famous for their tattooing, applied their wood carving technique to tattooing. In the moko style of Maori tattooing, shallow, colored grooves in distinctive, complex designs were produced on the face and buttocks by striking a small bone-cutting tool (used for shaping wood) into the skin. After the Europeans arrived in the 1700s, the Maori began using the metal that settlers brought for a more conventional style of puncture tattooing.
Music:
The Golden Age of PiracyThe end of the seventeenth century saw the greatest outburst of piracy in the history of seafaring. Ironically called “the Golden Age of Piracyâ€, the era lasted from around 1700 until 1730. Although the most troubled area was the Caribbean, piracy was also rife off the Eastern seaboard of America, in the Indian Ocean and off the West Coast of Africa (where the “Pirate Round†followed the trade routes from India to America via Africa).Legends in their own time, pirates such as Blackbeard and Bartholomew Roberts now seem larger than life. What we really know of them is surprisingly little, the recollections of ex-pirates, former victims, naval officers who encountered them or the records of courtrooms and confessions. One other source is the book “A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyratesâ€. The author, alleged to be Charles Johnston had extensive first-hand knowledge of piracy, and it is suggested that Johnston was the nom-de-plume for Daniel Defoe, ex-privateer and author of “Robinson Crusoeâ€.The outbreak was the result of circumstances – valuable cargoes were being shipped across the Atlantic, including gold, silver, and slaves. Meanwhile, a long period of conflict between England, France and Spain had been resolved, allowing the respective Navies to downsize and leaving ports full of unemployed sailors with no job prospects. Most pirates were American or English, and lack of strong colonial government made the American coast an ideal pirate hunting ground.Slowly judicial and naval pressure put and end to the outbreak, and by 1730 it was all but over. Although later outbreaks of piracy occurred, this short era would remain lodged in popular culture as the “Golden Age of Piracyâ€.
Movies:
They lived outside the bounds of society and they had both resources and opportunities as unavailable to their contemporaries as to us. They could travel wherever they wanted and had no permanent home beyond their ship. They lived outside the law and could take whatever they wanted from anyone—Navy vessels, merchantmen, fishing boats, and even coastal settlements. Often evil, they could sometimes be surprisingly generous. They lived by their wits, did not have "real jobs," and answered only to themselves. It sounds ideal.
Television:
Rank My Supernatural on my RankMyTattoos.com Profile .
Once you have made the decision to get a tattoo, the first step is to make a selection amongst the many tattoo artists. This is vital – tattoo artists really are artists (most take great pride in their technique, and show it off at tattoo conventions), and artistic vision is an individual thing. You have to make sure that the tattoo artist you select is one whose work you really love – after all, you will, in all likelihood, be living with this artwork for the rest of your life!Tattoo ShopYour local tattoo parlorThis is, of course, especially important if you have a custom tattoo design in mind. All tattoo shops (sometimes called tattoo parlors) have catalogs of tattoo designs you can choose from. There are also free tattoo designs available from a variety of internet sources. If you want to choose from these designs, your choice of tattoo artists is somewhat less important – any competent professional will probably be able to reproduce a set design, though individual areas of expertise do vary.For a really personal tattoo, you may be looking for a tattoo artist to design it for you. Some people come on with a picture or piece of art that they would like to base their tattoo on, and it’s up to the artist to adapt it. Sometimes people come in with just an idea in mind and a tattoo artist develops the design.If you want this degree of service, it is very important to choose the right artist. A good place to start is to attend a tattoo convention or visit various tattoo shops, and ask to see photos of the artists’ previous work. Some tattoo studios display photos prominently, but sometimes you will have to ask. Don’t be shy – most tattoo artists are glad to show off their work.Most tattoo studios go out of their way to make clients feel comfortable, and professionals will not be offended by questions regarding sterilization techniques and other safety concerns. Really good tattoo artists will be willing to work with you to make sure you get the tattoo you really want. Especially if it’s your first tattoo, most tattoo artists will explain the process and give you tips and instructions for aftercare.Most tattoo studios are very professional, and won’t give you any cause to feel uncomfortable. If you do, though, then it’s time to move on and look for a different place. Think of the time you invest in looking for the right hairdresser, and consider this: a haircut will grow out in three or four months, but a tattoo is forever!
Books:
what are the risks of getting a tattoo?While a tattoo may only take a few minutes to acquire, it is permanent. You should understand the risks and research the process before getting a tattoo. Tattooing involves breaking the skin, one of your body’s main protective barriers. This means you can be more susceptible to skin and blood infections. Specific risks include:* Blood-borne diseases such as HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C could be contracted if equipment used for your tattoo is contaminated with the blood of an infected person (please refer to Quick Facts about HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C).
* Unsterile tattooing equipment or re-used ink can cause symptoms of minor skin infections, from redness, swelling, or pus-like drainage, to potentially serious antibiotic-resistant skin infections (please refer to Quick Facts about MRSA).
* Granulomas, or bumps, may form around the site of the tattoo as a reaction to the ink.
Tattooing can cause keloids, or raised areas of excessive scarring, if you are prone to them.
* Inks may cause allergic reactions, such as an itchy rash, at the tattoo site.
* Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) exams may cause swelling or burning of tattooed areas.What are some signs of an infection?Your tattooist should tell you what to expect after getting a tattoo. Some swelling around the tattoo is normal. You should contact your health care provider if you have any of any of the following signs of infection:* Thick yellow or green drainage from the tattoo site
* Continuous oozing or bleeding
* Red streaks or a hot sensation surrounding and moving away from the tattooed area
* Worsening pain
* Any unusual swellingHow should you care for a tattoo?The tattooist should provide you with detailed instructions on care for your tattoo to include:* Cleaning with soap and water
* Applying moisturizer
* Avoiding sun exposure
* Not picking at scabs
Heroes:
We are professionals. (We say that.) I have heard people cry about not being heard or taken seriously by Health Departments or their legislators and not getting "respect." Respect probably will never come from certain quarters but we can adopt good safety measures and have respect for ourselves by living "professional-like" lives. Business cards and ads proclaim "Health Dept. Licensed or Approved" but some of those shops certainly don't look like anyone approved them. They don't show visibly an appreciation and practice of a Health Oriented way of thinking and conducting business: vigilant against contamination, knowing today's standards to pre-prevent and protect clients, attention to the details of sanitary work and premises and "professional" attitude across the board. Professional is an attitude of going the distance without making compromises, of being truthful and doing the right thing.
