The History of Tattoo

People have marked their bodies with tattoos almost everywhere in the world at one time or another. As evidenced by mummified remains discovered in Europe, Egypt, Siberia, and elsewhere, the practice has been around for thousands of years.

In the early 1990s on the border of Austria and Italy in the Alps, the body of a man was found. Subsequent carbon dating showed that this well-preserved frozen human had died approximately 5,300 years earlier. Of note was the fact that he had several purposely placed markings on his skin, making this discovery one the best examples of tattoos on ancient man.

It is thought the word "tattoo" is derived from the Tahitian word "tattau" and the Polynesian (Marquesan) word "tatu", which means "to mark." This was first mentioned in 1769 by explorer James Cook's after his expedition to the South Pacific.

The practice of permanently decorating the human body, however, has been in existence for thousands of years with origins tracing back to the Stone Age.

 

Pacific Islanders have worn tattoos for hundreds if not thousands of years. Traditional designs - some just decorative, some with mystical meanings - remain popular today. Definite evidence of the use of tattoos in ancient times has been found in various parts of the world. Although more refined tools and inks have been developed over the centuries, the technique for applying a tattoo has changed very little: ink is put into the inner, or dermal, layer of the skin by means of a needle or other sharp object.

Until the advent of Christianity tattoos were commonplace in Europe. They were banned by the church, however, and had virtually disappeared when they were "rediscovered" by European sailors who came into contact with American Indians and Pacific Islanders.

Some explorers returned home wearing tattoos; they also brought back drawings of decorated islanders and Indians - and occasionally the islanders and Indians themselves, who were exhibited at fairs and circuses. The newly popular tattoos were favoured mostly by working-class Europeans, but they enjoyed a brief spurt of popularity among upper-class men and women in England in the late 19th century.

Tattoos have meant different things to different cultures: For some peoples a tattoo promised invincibility in war, for some tattoos protected against sickness or misfortune, for some they offered safe passage into heaven or the after world, and for some they furnished a visible badge of rank or of membership in a certain group. Tattoos have been used to mark prisoners and to brand society's outcasts. They can serve as a way of advertising one's emotional (or philosophical) attachments. Most commonly, however, tattoos have been and still are used for decoration.

It is estimated that more than 5% of the adult population has a tattoo for either decorative or cosmetic purposes. That is approximately 200,000 New Zealanders.

In recent years tattooing and other forms of body art, such as piercing, have surged in popularity in the United States and some other countries. People in every walk of life-including celebrities, royalty, and white-collar workers-have acquired tattoos. And, with numerous magazines, World Wide Web sites, and conventions devoted to tattooing, what was once a storefront affair has become big business.

By the mid-1990s tattoos had largely shucked their old criminal or counterculture associations and had generally come to be considered a form of personal expression or style. Nonetheless, tattoos remain a symbol of rebellion and defiance for many. People who think such a symbol might cause trouble at the office are careful to have tattoos only on parts of the body that can be easily covered by clothes.  Before they became a chic fashion accessory in the 1990s, tattoos were favoured largely by society's rougher members - soldiers, sailors, bikers, criminals, labourers, punks.

When executed by a professional, a tattoo can be a work of art. While some tattooists draw freestyle with the tattoo needle, most start by tracing at least the outlines of the desired image on the skin before applying ink. In some cultures - segments of Japanese society, for example - a long tradition of fine-art tattoos exists. The designs and techniques are often closely guarded, so that only the members of a group may wear its style of tattoo. At most tattoo parlours customers can bring in a design of their choosing or select one from a page of "flash."

EARLY TATTOO METHODS

There is a wide variety of means by which tattoo ink can be injected into the skin. Simple skin pricking with solid needles coated in ink, this was most often a sharp piece of bone. Also scratching or abrading the skin and then applying ink to the excoriations through mechanical rubbing was another method common in Africa. Even drawing threads coated with pigmented ashes through the skin is one of the early methods. However, the one thing all tattoo techniques have in common is the depth of pigment placement; for the ink to become permanent it must be placed in the layer of skin known as the dermis.

Pazyryk culture

In 1948, 120 miles north of the border between Russia and China, Russian archaeologist Sergei Rudenko began excavating a group of tombs, or kurgans, in the high Altai Mountains of western and southern Siberia. Mummies were found that date from around 2400 years ago.  The tattoos on their bodies represent a variety of animals. The griffins and monsters are thought to have a magical significance but some elements are believed to be purely decorative.  Altogether the tattoos are believed to reflect the status of the individual.

Egypt

Written records, physical remains, and works of art relevant to Egyptian tattoo have virtually been ignored by earlier Egyptologists influenced by prevailing social attitudes toward the medium. Today however, we know that there have been bodies recovered dating to as early XI dynasty exhibiting the art form of tattoo. In 1891, archaeologists discovered the mummified remains of Amunet, a priestess of the goddess Hathor, at Thebes who lived sometime between 2160 BC and 1994 BC. This female mummy displayed several lines and dots tattooed about her body - grouping dots and/or dashes were aligned into abstract geometric patterns. This art form was restricted to women only, and usually these women were associated with ritualistic practice.  The Egyptians spread the practice of tattooing throughout the world. The pyramid-building third and fourth dynasties of Egypt developed international nations with Crete, Greece, Persia, and Arabia. By 2,000 BC the art of tattooing had stretched out all the way to Southeast Asia. The Ainu (western Asian nomads) then brought it with them as they moved to Japan.

Japan

The earliest evidence of tattooing in Japan is found in the form of clay figurines which have faces painted or engraved to represent tattoo marks. The oldest figurines of this kind have been recovered from tombs dated 3,000 BC or older, and many other such figurines have been found in tombs dating from the second and third millennia BC.  These figurines served as stand-ins for living individuals who symbolically accompanied the dead on their journey into the unknown, and it is believed that the tattoo marks had religious or magical significance. The first written record of Japanese tattooing is found in a Chinese dynastic history compiled in 297 AD. The Japanese were interested in the art mostly for its decorative attributes, as opposed to magical ones. The Horis - the Japanese tattoo artists - were the undisputed masters. Their use of colours, perspective, and imaginative designs gave the practice a whole new angle. The classic Japanese tattoo is a full body suit.

China

From southern China the practice spread along the silk route. Chinese tattoos have become a raging phenomenon among tattoo enthusiasts of the western world. Chinese tattoos offer beautiful characters with a sense of the exotic and often much deeper meaning than that which lies on the surface.

However Chinese tattoos have also come with much controversy. The Hanzi and Kanji characters on which they are based come from China and Japan, but neither of these countries have strong tattooing histories related to Chinese characters. Often as well there are many problems with translation of English sayings into Chinese as well as tattoo artists attempting to replicate complex Chinese characters that often leads to tattoos that don't say what you think they say.

 

Ci Shen - Chinese Tattoos

The art of tattooing has been known in China for thousands of years. Tattooing in China is called Ci Shen (Or Wen Shen), a term that means literally "puncture the body." Although the art has been known in China for ages, it has for the most part been an uncommon practice. Throughout Chinese history tattooing has been seen as a defamation of the body, something undesirable.

Water Margin, one of the four classical novels of Chinese literature, does reference tattooing. Water Margin tells the stories of bandits of Mount Liang area of China during the early 12th century. The novel talks about the 108 companions of the historical bandit Song Jiang. Three of these characters are referenced as having tattoos covering their entire bodies.

The most famous tattoo in Chinese history comes from the legend of the Chinese general Yueh Fei. Yueh Fei served the South Song Dynasty. During battle with northern enemies the Field Marshall under whom Yueh Fei served betrayed the South Song and went over to the enemy.

In protest Yueh Fei resigned and returned home. His mother grew angry with him, telling him that his duty was first and foremost to his country, despite all else. To remind him of this fact she tattooed four characters on his back with her sewing needle. These characters, Jin zhong bao guo, are difficult to translate but mean something like "Serve his country with ultimate loyalty."

Polynesia

In pacific cultures tattooing has a huge historic significance. Polynesian tattooing is considered the most intricate and skilful tattooing of the ancient world. Polynesian peoples believe that a person's Mana, their spiritual power or life force, is displayed through their tattoo. The vast majority of what we know today about these ancient arts has been passed down through legends, songs, and ritual ceremonies. Elaborate geometrical designs which were often added to, renewed, and embellished throughout the life of the individual until they covered the entire body.

 

In Samoa, the tradition of applying tattoo, or 'tatau', by hand, has long been defined by rank and title, with chiefs and their assistants, descending from notable families in the proper birth order. The tattooing ceremonies for young chiefs, typically conducted at the onset of puberty, were elaborate affairs and were a key part of their ascendance to a leadership role. The permanent marks left by the tattoo artists would forever celebrate their endurance and dedication to cultural traditions. The first Europeans who set foot on Samoan soil were members of a 1787 French expedition. They got a closer look at the natives and reported that 'the men have their thighs painted or tattooed in such a way that one would think them clothed, although they are almost naked'.  The mythological origins of Samoan tattooing and the extraordinary cross-cultural history of tatau has been transported to the migrant communities of New Zealand, and later disseminated into various international subcultures from Auckland to the Netherlands.

The Hawaiian people had their traditional tattoo art, known as 'kakau'. It served them not only for ornamentation and distinction, but also to guard their health and spiritual well-being. Intricate patterns, mimicking woven reeds or other natural forms, graced men's arms, legs, torso and face. Women were generally tattooed on the hand, fingers, wrists and sometimes on their tongue.  The arrival of western missionaries forced this unique art form into decline as tattooing has been discouraged or forbidden by most Christian churches throughout history.

New Zealand

The Maori of New Zealand had created one of the most impressive cultures of all Polynesia. Their tattoo, called 'moko', reflected their refined artistry - using their woodcarving skills to carve skin. The full-face moko was a mark of distinction, which communicated their status, lines of descent and tribal affiliations. It recalled their wearer's exploits in war and other great events of their life.

Major General Horatio Robley was a military man who was also a writer and illustrator. His 1896 book, Moko, or Maori Tattooing is the standard reference for Moko or New Zealand Maori Tattooing.

Moko was unique in that the face was decorated with intricate spirals that were not only tattooed but also incised into the skin to make scars in the form of parallel ridges and grooves. With the exception of slaves and commoners, all men were tattooed on the face and most were also tattooed on other parts of the body. An elegantly tattooed face was a source of pride to the warrior, for it made him fierce in battle and attractive to women.

Women were also tattooed, but not as elaborately as the men. Lips outlined and tattooed solid blue were considered beautiful. The chin was also tattooed, and sometimes a few lines or spirals were worn on the cheeks or forehead. One early explorer reported seeing Maori women complete with facial tattooing like that of the men, but this was rare.  Moko designs consisted of a series of traditional components, each of which had a name. Maori chiefs were able to draw their own facial tattoos accurately from memory, and used them as signatures.

Maori Tattoo Instruments

The tattooing instruments used by the Maoris were small chisel-shaped pieces of bone, shell, or metal that were dipped in pigment and then struck with a mallet. In order to get the scarred ridges and grooves that identified moko it was necessary for the instrument to penetrate deeply into the flesh, and cuts were sometimes so deep that they went through the cheek. The pain was intense and there was a lot of blood, but it was a point of pride with Maori warriors never to flinch or make a sound while being tattooed.
The Maori took tattooed heads of their enemies as trophies during war and kept them in ornately carved ceremonial boxes.
In the first decade of the 19th century, Europeans made regular contact with Maori tribes along the coast. By 1814, three missionaries decided to convert the Maoris and one chief named Hongi was brought to England with a missionary, where he worked with a professor from Oxford to write a bilingual dictionary and translate the bible into the Maori language. When in England, Hongi was presented to polite society who admired his tattoos and King George IV granted him an audience and presented him with a trunk full of gifts as a reward for his efforts in spreading the gospel.
On his way back to New Zealand, Hongi stopped off in Sydney, where he exchanged the King's gifts for several hundred muskets and a large supply of ammunition. When he returned to New Zealand, he used his muskets to launch a series of raids against his traditional tribal foes.
For a time his enemies were unable to resist him. Muskets were expensive, and Hongi's enemies had little to trade for firearms. A ton of flax, which had to be laboriously scraped and dressed by hand, bought only one musket.
The Maoris soon discovered, however, that European traders would trade a musket for a tattooed head. Soon Maori warriors made raids on neighbouring tribes for the sole purpose of obtaining tattooed heads to trade for guns. The traders sold them to museums and private collections in Europe. As more Maoris acquired muskets, more heads became available, and business prospered.
The supply of guns was inexhaustible, but the supply of heads was not, and before many years the Maoris were getting desperate. Slaves and commoners captured in battle were tattooed and killed so that their heads could be sold. And even heads of poor quality, with mediocre or unfinished tattooing, were offered for sale.
Major General Horatio Robley is perhaps most well known for his eccentric collection.
Robley decided to acquire as many mummified the tattooed heads as possible. Over the years he built a collection of 35. In 1908 he offered them to the New Zealand Government for $1,000 but his offer was denied. Today, 30 of his heads are in the collection of the Natural History Museum in New York.
In 1873, an artist named Gottfried Lindauer (1838-1926) arrived in New Zealand and was fascinated by the Maori. By the end of the 19th century, he had completed over 100 portraits which are now part of a priceless collection of the Auckland Art Gallery. His work is of great historical value because it is a precise record of some of the most artistic and sophisticated tattooing which was ever produced. Many of the Maori individuals who sat for their portraits had played leading roles during New Zealand's formative years.
The following excerpt is taken from Moko or Maori Tattooing by Horatio G. Robley: Captain Cook wrote in 1769: "The marks in general are spirals drawn with great nicety and even elegance. One side corresponds with the other. The marks on the body resemble foliage in old chased ornaments, convolutions of filigree work, but in thee they have such a luxury of forms that of a hundred which at first appeared exactly the same no two were formed alike on close examination."
A draughtsman employed by Joseph Banks; Sydney Parkinson gave accounts on moko as it was in 1769. He said, "As to tattooing, it is done very curiously in spiral and other figures; and in many places it is indented into their skins which looks like carving, though at a distance it appears as it has been only smeared with a black paint."
The mode of tattooing practiced by the Maoris was unlike that of any other race, and their artistic designs were arranged so that the skin of the face was often completely covered up to the corners of the eyes, and even over the eyelids; and that the stains, though tending to diminish in brilliancy, were indelible.

Indonesia

Borneo is one of the few places in the world where traditional tribal tattooing is still practiced today just as it has been for thousands of years. Until recently many of the inland tribes had little contact with the outside world. As a result, they have preserved many aspects of their traditional way of life, including tattooing. Borneo designs have gone all around the world to form the basis of what the western people call 'tribal'.

India / Thailand

Hanuman in India was a popular symbol of strength on arms and legs. The mythical monk is still today one of the most popular creations in Thailand and Myanmar. They are put on the human body by monks who incorporate magical powers to the design while tattooing. Women are excluded because monks are not allowed to be touched by them and because Thaïs believe women do not need the extra boost as they are already strong enough on their own.

Africa

In Africa, where people have dark skin, it is difficult to make coloured tattoos as we know them. But they want to be tattooed anyway, so they have developed another technique - they make scarifications (this is not really tattooing, but it is related to tattooing), made by lifting the skin a little, and making a cut with a knife or some other sharp thing special sands or ashes were rubbed in to make raised scars in patterns on the body, it can be felt like Braille lettering...these patterns often follow local traditions.

Ancient Greece and Rome

The Greeks learnt tattooing from the Persians. Their women were fascinated by the idea of tattoos as exotic beauty marks. The Romans adopted tattooing from the Greeks. Roman writers such as Virgil, Seneca, and Galenus reported that many slaves and criminals were tattooed. A legal inscription from Ephesus indicates that during the early Roman Empire all slaves exported to Asia were tattooed with the words 'tax paid'.  Greeks and Romans also used tattooing as a punishment. Early in the fourth century, when Constantine became roman emperor and rescinded the prohibition on Christianity, he also banned tattooing on face, which was common for convicts, soldiers, and gladiators. Constantine believed that the human face was a representation of the image of god and should not be disfigured or defiled.

The Celts

The Celts were a tribal people who moved across Western Europe in times around 1200 and 700 B.C. they reached the British Isles around 400 B.C. and most of what has survived from their culture is in the areas now known as Ireland, Wales and Scotland. Celtic culture was full of body art.  Permanent body painting was done with wood, which left a blue design on the skin. Spirals are very common, and they can be single, doubled or tripled. Knot work is probably the most recognized form of Celtic art, with lines forming complex braids which then weave across themselves. These symbolise the connection of all life. Step or key patterns, like those found in early labyrinth designs, are seen both in simple borders and full complex mazes. Much in the way that labyrinths are walked, these designs are symbolic of the various paths that life's journey can take.

Central & South America

In Peru, tattooed Inca mummies dating to the 11th century have been found. 16th century Spanish accounts of Mayan tattooing in Mexico and Central America reveal tattoos to be a sign of courage. When Cortez and his conquistadors arrived on the coast of Mexico in 1519 they were horrified to discover that the natives not only worshipped devils in the form of statues and idols, but had somehow managed to imprint indelible images of these idols on their skin. The Spaniards, who had never heard of tattooing, recognized it at once as the work of Satan. The sixteenth century Spanish historians who chronicled the adventures of Cortez and his conquistadors reported that tattooing was widely practiced by the natives of Central America.

North America

Early Jesuit accounts testify to the widespread practice of tattooing among Native Americans. Among the Chickasaw, outstanding warriors were recognised by their tattoos. Among the Ontario Iroquoians, elaborate tattoos reflected high status. In north-west America, Inuit women's chins were tattooed to indicate marital status and group identity.  New York City was settled up in 1846 and began a tradition by tattooing military servicemen from both sides of the civil war. Samuel O'Reilly invented the electric tattooing machine in 1891.

Middle-East

During the time of the Old Testament, much of the pagan world was practicing the art of tattooing as a means of deity worship. A passage in Leviticus reads: 'ye shall not make any cuttings on your flesh for the dead nor print any marks upon you'. (19:28) this has been cited as biblical authority to support the church's position. Biblical scholar M.W. Thomson suggests, however, that Moses favoured tattoos. Moses introduced tattoos as a way to commemorate the deliverance of the Jews from slavery in Egypt.

Vikings

It is very likely that the Vikings were tattooed. At around year 1100 the Arab Ibn Fadlan described a meeting with some Vikings. He thought them very rude, dirty - and covered with pictures.

England

Explorers returned home with tattooed Polynesians to exhibit at fairs, in lecture halls and in dime museums, to demonstrate the height of European civilization compared to the 'primitive natives'. After Captain Cook returned from his voyage to Polynesia tattooing became a tradition in the British navy. By the middle of the 18th century most British ports had at least one professional tattoo artist in residence. In 1862, the Prince of Wales, later to become King Edward VII, received his first tattoo - a Jerusalem cross - on his arm. He started a tattoo fad among the aristocracy when he was tattooed before ascending to the throne. In 1882, his sons, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of York were tattooed by the Japanese master tattooist, Hori Chiyo.

France

In the 18th century, many French sailors returning from voyages in the south pacific had been tattooed. In 1861, French naval surgeon, Maurice Berchon, published a study on the medical complications of tattooing. After this, the navy and army banned tattooing within their ranks.

Stereotypical and sensationalised association of tattoo design

Sailor

Sailors on their ships returned home with their own tattoos...usually of a very basic style that only uses a minimum amount of details making the tattoos look quite two dimensional and flat. This often gives a cartoonish feeling and typical motifs would be flowers, hearts, mermaids, ships, anchors, snakes, birds, and names.

Criminality

For a long time, tattooing was the preserve of sailors and...Criminals!  In prison, the tattoo - professionally done and homemade indelibly imprint on their bodies what these men desire in their souls: autonomy and identity.  The ultimate symbol for gang members are their gang tattoos, getting a permanent mark is a sign of showing total commitment to the gang. These tattoos can reveal lots of things, like, who you are/what gang you're in/ what your beliefs are (racist etc..), what you have done, where you have been, how many years you have been in jail (also referred to as 'dead time') and even things like how many you have killed. Known symbols include teardrops under the eye as well as spider webs on the elbows to symbolize people killed.

Circus

The popularity of tattooing during the latter part of the nineteenth century and the first half of the twentieth century owed much to the circus. When circuses prospered, tattooing prospered. For over 70 years every major circus employed several completely tattooed people. Some were exhibited in sideshows; others performed traditional circus acts such as juggling and sword swallowing.

MODERN TATTOOING

Thomas Edison patented a tattooing device called the autographic printer in 1876, which he intended to be used as an engraving device for hard surfaces. Some years later a man called Samuel O'Reilly modified Edison's machine by changing the tube system and also incorporating a rotary-driven electromagnetic oscillating unit. This enabled the machine to drive the tattooist's needle. The modern tattoo machine is a steel instrument, which is fitted with needles that puncture the skin at the rate of 50 to 3,000 times a minute. Operated by a foot switch, the tattoo machine uses an up-and-down motion to puncture the epidermis and drive ink particles between 0.6 mm and 2.2 mm into the skin.

TATTOO INK

Tattoo artists use various pigments of unknown purity and identity. In professional and amateur tattoos, the location of the ink pigment varies greatly as does the size and shape of the ink particles themselves.

Professional artists have access to more than 100 different colours. Black ink is the most common colour seen in professional tattoos, followed by red, blue, green, yellow and orange. Recent tattoos have a great range of colours, including shades of pink, brown, purple and even fluorescent colours. Some tattoo inks are actually a mixture of colours with a wide range of shades and are thus difficult to classify as a single pigment.

Amateur tattoo inks consist of simple, carbon particles originating from any burnt wood, cotton, paper, or from a variety of inks, including India ink and pen ink.

Because ink manufacturers are not required to list the composition of their products, in the often, neither tattoo artists nor patients have any idea of the exact make-up of the tattoo ink.

The composition of the tattoo pigment on a microscopic level appears be very similar for all pigments. Black pigment granules in tattoos to vary in diameter from 0.5 μm to 4.0 μm. Colour ink granules were noted to be larger than black.

In biopsy specimens obtained at 3 months and at 40 years, a prominent network of connective tissue is found to surround each fibroblast that contains ink particles, effectively entrapping and immobilizing the cell. This presence of ink particles only in dermal fibroblasts supports the theory that fibroblasts are responsible for the stable intradermal life span of the tattoo. The life span of these fibroblasts is unknown and may persist throughout the individual's life.