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Johnny Depp speaks for many of us when he says, “My body is my journal, and my tattoos are my story.” Telling a story with tattoos is more facile for those whose voices can’t. There are those that are accepting; more disposed to give compliments, even asking questions and listening to the responses given. Others are not so accepting; openly travestying and vilipending your method of expression. Tattoos are met with negative stereotypes; often being accused as an act of rebellion, unprofessional, or a telltale of being a malefactor. It’s important for people to be able to express themselves, and no one should be able to tell you otherwise.
Tattoos have an extensive range of history. The earliest evidence of tattooing belonged to a mummy nicknamed Otzi. He was discovered by husband and wife Helmut and Erika Simon when they were walking down the mountain passes of Hauslabjoch and Tisenjoch in 1991. According to Laura Geggel, “Otzi’s tattoos are no secret…but researchers have disagreed about the number of tattoos on Otzi’s body for years, and ‘we decided it would be important to have a clear number of the tattoos’…” The number of tattoos is important because of the way it is used to classify other groups of people. Geggel continues by mentioning, “All 61 of the tattoos are made of black lines, measuring 0.3 inches to 1.6 inches (0.7 to 4 centimeters) in length and arranged in groups of two, three, or four parallel lines…” This doesn’t seem too different from Morse Code, as it also uses parallel lines to symbolize something.
In different parts of the world, tattoos have a very strong meaning to both men and women. Kent State University graduate Amanda Leu goes on to ancient Egypt’s history of body art. She goes on to mention that “…people in ancient Egypt use tattoos for important aspects of their culture…” The Egyptians seemed to favor tattoos among women as there were a series of dots and dashes across the lower abdomen. The reasoning was when a woman got pregnant, her lower abdomen would expand, and the dots and dashes would stretch to create a net-like structure that would protect the unborn child from the advances of malevolent spirits thought to harbor disease (Mark).
This additionally applies to the Polynesian culture. Like other aspects of cultures with tattoos, they are very proud of what their body art represents. Meghan Kliewer talks about how the process among them signifies a right of passage and preserves their history. She interviews Sulu’ape Si’i Liufau, owner of A-Town Tattoo. He states, ‘You’re expected to survive your infection, finish regardless of whatever. It brought me to tears, but I finished it.’ When he mentions ‘expected to survive’ and ‘finish regardless,” he is referring to how failing to finish receiving your tattoo and backing down is a contradiction to the bravery of Polynesian people. Kliewer also talks with Nathan Mabalr about his Filipino heritage. Because of the tribal tattoos he saw on his father and uncle, he was to get one also. She takes notes on what he says: ‘I wanted something more about my heritage. Honestly, I know pretty much nothing about my Filipino side.’
The practice of body art also grew into more places and more people; sailors were getting tattoos to note their travels: an anchor for crossing the Atlantic and arriving south of the equator meant a turtle (Anderson). As the people and places expand, so do their methods. Besides the tattoo machine (which we most commonly use today), there are also those using the bamboo method, rake, and striking stick, and metal tube. Using sharpened bamboo was common in Thailand. In appearance, they ranged in length from half a foot to a foot in length, and are often shaped like quills. They were also dipped in ink and inserted into the skin with the hand; the hand poked method is also known as Tebori and is still practiced today (Jakobs). The raking and striking stick stands out from the other methods mentioned; it was a two-person job. One person has to hold someone down while the other stretches the skin. Originating in Polynesia, the striking stick would puncture the skin rather than push it at an angle (Muratore). Metal tubing and the tattoo machine are not so different. As a matter of fact, metal tubing is what is thought to inspire the modern tattoo practice (Dave and Deb).
A 2018 study at Dalia Research records the number of people with tattoos around the world. It is shown that the U.S. is in the top three at 46 percent with Sweden coming in second at 47 percent, and Italy taking the lead at 48 percent. At about 45 percent, there are people ages 30 to 49 with the highest rate of tattoos.
Works Cited
- Anderson, Addison. ‘The History of Tattoos.’, YouTube, uploaded by TED-Ed, 18 Sep 2014, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MYn15yDBvxM
- Dave and Deb. ‘Bamboo Tattoos and Other Unique Techniques From Around the World.’ The Planet D, 18 Aug 2019, https://the planetd.com/bamboo-tattoos-unique-tattooing-techniques/
- Geggel, Laura. ‘Fresh Ink: Mummified Iceman Has New Tattoo.’ Google, Google, 28 Jan 2015, www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/49611-otzi-iceman-mummy-tattoos.html.
- Holmes, Anisa. ‘Who has the Most Tattoos? It’s Not Who You’d Expect.’ Dalia Research, 17 May 2018, https://medium.com/daliaresearch/who-has-the-most-tattoos-its-not-who-you-d-expect-1d5ffff660f8
- Jakobs, Helen. “The Evolution of Tattooing Technology.” Blogool, 18 June 2017, blogool.com/article/the-evolution-of-tattooing-technology.
- Kliewer, Meghan. ‘Polynesian Tattoos Symbolize Identity and Tell Cultural Stories.’ Daily Titan, 31 Oct 2017, https://dailytitan.com/2017/10/polynesian-tattoos-tell-cultural-stories-body-art/
- Leu, Amanda. ‘Tattoo Acceptance: Understanding Identity and Personal Expression.’ YouTube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 21 Aug 2018, https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Wix20uEChpu https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=MYn15yDBvxM
- https://theplanetd.com/bamboo-tattoos-unique-tattooing-techniques/
- http://www.google.com/amp/s/www.livescience.com/amp/49611-otzi-iceman-mummy-tattoos.html
- https://medium.com/daliaresearch/who-has-the-most-tattoos-its-not-who-you-d-expect-1d5ffff660f8
- https://medium.com/daliaresearch/who-has-the-most-tattoos-its-not-who-you-d-expect-1d5ffff660f8
- https://blogool.com/article/the-evolution-of-tattooing-technology
- https://dailytitan.com/2017/10/polynesian-tattoos-tell-cultural-stories-body-art/
- https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Wix20uEChpu
- Mark, Joshua J. ‘Tattoos on Ancient Egypt.’ Ancient Egypt Encyclopedia, 9 Jan 2017,https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ancient.eu/amp/2-1000/
- Muratore, Gio. “4 Methods of Tattooing from History.” Joyenergizer, 12 Jan. 2017, 10:03 am, https://joyenergizer.com/4-methods-of-tattooing-from-history/
- https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.ancient.eu/amp/2-1000/
- https://joyenergizer.com/4-methods-of-tattooing-from-history/
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