Essay On Tattoos

A Brief History of Tattooing

The history of tattooing goes back as far as 3000 B.C or further, the oldest example of tattooing is Otzi the Iceman, his body bears the oldest examples of tattooing and he was found frozen in the Alps and was discovered in 1991. The origin of the word tattoo comes from the Polynesian word ‘ta’, this means to strike something, but it also comes from the Tahitian word ‘tatau’ which means to mark something. Polynesia is known for its intricate tattoos and is considered to have the most skilful tattooing history of the ancient world. In Polynesia the position of a tattoo and the symbol is it, is very important as tattoos are a display of a person’s manna, which is their spiritual power, they are also a way of showing a person’s character, making the men more attractive to the women. Throughout an individual’s lifetime geometric tattoos are added to their body until their entire body is covered, these tattoos are renewed all throughout their lifetime so that none fade or disappear but before getting tattooed a person had to experience a long period of cleansing, during this time a person wasn’t allowed any contact with the opposite sex, they also had to fast for a certain amount of time. In Samoa the tradition of tattooing shows your rank and title, the tattooing ceremonies for young chiefs, which are normally at the beginning of puberty are key parts to their journey to being a leader, these tattoos celebrate their loyalty to cultural traditions. Tattoo masters are very important in Polynesian tattoo culture, they know the meanings behind certain tattoos and they know how to create more meanings through combining tattoos, sea creatures are the most common symbol in Polynesian tattoos. Tattoo styles v...

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...ymbols that represent luck are HOLD FAST, this reminds you to hold on to the lines fast when the ship encounters bad weather, a pig and a rooster, this is tattooed on the feet or behind the ankles and represent survival of a shipwreck due to both animals usually being kept on board in wooden crates, the crates would float and wash up on shore after the ship has sunk, twin propellers, these would be tattooed on the sailors butt cheeks and are said to propel you ashore if you are drowning, a swallow, this represents always being able to find your way home and finally a nautical star, this serves as a guide back hope and represents the North Star. These symbols are now not only sported by sailors, many people choose to get these symbols tattooed on them even though they have no link to the sea, tattoo culture is more about the design nowadays and less about symbolism.