Tattoo History

A detailed Summary of Tattoo History

Society has developed many different ways to identify who a person is or where they may come from. Some distinctions are by a skin color, or by the way a person speaks. Many years ago and even to this day tattoos have been distinguishing who a person is. Tattoos have been put onto both sexes to decorate, enhance, and modify the skin given to us at birth. One site said that "tattoos are self-motivated expressions of personal freedom and uniqueness" (web page). Each tribe uses tattoos for different reasons, some use them as a marking of status, where a person fits in their culture. Dayak tribes believed that tattoos symbolized an important function after death, this belief was also known in many American Indian tribes. The Chinese culture uses tattoos to distinguish a person who has been found guilty of a severe crime. In native North America tattooing was frequently associated with religious and magical practices. As tattooing became more popular it landed in England where the first royal family member became tattooed.

It is said that skin ornamentation is as ancient as Man himself. The oldest tattooed body known to date is that of Bronze Age man who died over 5000 years ago. He was found frozen intact in an Italian

The process of being tattooed as a man is much unlike that of a women. Each tribe completes the process in different and unusual ways. Kayans usually began the tattooing process during boyhood. If a man takes the head of an enemy he can have the backs of his hands and fingers covered with tattoos (Hose). Samoa tribes take several months to complete the tattooing process, it is a very strict ritual. The sequence of tattooing begins with the waist and progressing down to the knees, only working with the area the size of a hand each week. To a Soman man, this part of his life is very crucial, it is when he enters manhood. For the Ojibwa, tattoos were used for therapeutic reasons. They marked temples, forehead, and cheeks of those suffering from headaches and toothaches. In this tribe the ceremony was accompanied by songs and dances. Tattooing for the Apiaca Indian boys began at age 14 and consisted of a face tattoo. This meant a rectangle around the mouth, indicating that the boy could eat human flesh.

The process of tattooing can be done in many different ways, and has changed greatly from time to time. First record of tattooing was done with a blackened stick in a fire then burnt onto human skin. For the Kayan tribe they used two or three prickers and an iron striker all kept in a wooden case. The striker is a short iron rod, half covered with a string lashing. The prickers are wooden rods with a short pointed head projecting at right angles; the head is attached to a lump of resin in which are embedded three or four short needles (web page). The pigment is made of a mixture of soot, water, and sugar cane juice. Before coloring on a persons body, they carve in high relief on blocks of wood which are then smeared with ink and pressed on the skin leaving an impression. To begin the process the tattooer stretches, with her feet, the skin of the part to be tattooed, and dips her pricker into the pigment. She follows the line of the impression driving the needle points into the skin. This operation is seemingly very painful and there is no antiseptic precautions ever taken. In the Soman culture the use of needles, sharpened awls, or thorns is needed. The artist does a great deal of rubbing out before any drawing is done on the body. Whatever the body part being tattooed is, it is very important to check for large veins and to shave off all hairs. The tattooer then pierces the skin and traces images onto the body. Ao Naga use an adze-like instrument to which a bunch of cane-thorns is attached. The black coloring matter is applied a second time after the blood has been washed off. The punctures may sometimes become infected which will lead to bad sores and some may occasionally lose a leg.

glazier. During examination he was found to have both arms, legs, and torso, covered with ela

Some common words found in the essay are:
Ao Naga, Apiaca Indian, Bali Java, Tattoo Lucky, , University Press, Institute British, Paris Hippodrome, Hose Samoa, Samuel O'Reilly, tattooing process, tattoo artist, web page, facial tattoos, tattoo artists, british tattoo, human beauty, british tattoo artists, family tattooed, ao naga, ideal human, ideal human beauty, royal family tattooed,

Approximate Word count = 1908
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Miscellaneous