Researchers in Museums. Material evidence of ancient tattooing is extremely rare in the archaeological record, not least because of the difficulty in identifying. What is the evidence that ancient Egyptians had tattoos? Also small bronze implements identified as tattooing tools were discovered at the town site of Gurob in northern Egypt and dated to c.
- Ancient Tools For Tattooing Beginners
- Ancient Tools For Tattooing Near Me
- Ancient Chinese Tattooing Techniques
The English word tattoo is commonly said to be derived from the Polynesian word tatau or tatu. This Polynesian word means ‘to mark something’. Additionally, this word is an onomatopoeia, and is derived from the sound that was made by the tools that were used during the process of tattooing. Although this word only entered the English (and other European languages) when the inhabitants of Polynesia were encountered several hundred years ago, tattoos have existed for a much longer period of time, and can be found in many ancient cultures.
Ötzi’s Tattoos
At present, the earliest known tattoos can be found on the body of the naturally preserved mummy commonly known as ‘Ötzi the Iceman’. This frozen mummy was discovered in the area of the Italian-Austrian border in 1991, and is believed to be around 5,200 years old.
There are about 57 tattoos of various sorts on the mummy, including dots, small crosses, and straight lines. The distribution of these tattoos seems to be random at first glance. For instance, there are some dots and crosses on his lower spine, several straight lines above the kidneys, and a number of parallel lines on the ankles of the mummy.
Volcanic glass tools that are at least 3,000 years old were used for tattooing in the South Pacific in ancient times, a new study finds. The skin-piercing tools could yield insight into ancient. Ancient Obsidian Tools Were Used for Tattooing, Archaeologists Find. Using replicas of the ancient artifacts to conduct their tattooing experiments, which incorporated various pigments. Ancient Egypt. Archaeologist W.M.F. Petrie discovered two different types of ancient tattoo tools in Egypt, according to 'Smithsonian Magazine.' The first type was a wood-handled tattoo instrument with a sharp point, dating back to 3000 B.C., found in Abydos, Egypt. Most ancient cultures used tools like rose thorns, sharks’ teeth, and pelican bones to push pigments into the skin. Like the red ochre and soot, these pigments were also naturally obtained. With the invention of needles during the Iron Age, tattooing quickly adapted to this new equipment. Also small bronze implements identified as tattooing tools were discovered at the town site of Gurob in northern Egypt and dated to c. What has surprised you the most about ancient.
A cross-shaped tattoo on Otzi's knee. Radiolab [Right] Researchers take a sample from the Iceman's hip in 2014. Download kaspersky internet security 2011. (Credit: Samadelli Marco/EURAC)
Ötzi’s tattoos may have had a therapeutic function, as the areas where his tattoos were found correspond with areas of stress-induced degeneration. One proposed scenario is that a traditional healer made incisions on the skin of the afflicted area, placed medicinal herbs in the wounds, and then burned it with the point of a heated metal instrument. As a result, the charred residue was incorporated into the resulting scars. This method of treating rheumatic pains has also been used by the Berbers of the mountainous regions of North Africa for centuries.
Egyptian Tattoos
Another example for the use of tattoos by the ancients can be found in the ancient Egyptian civilization. The body and limbs of some female figurines dating to around 4000 – 3500 BC are decorated with tattoos. Additionally, some females depicted in tomb scenes are also shown to have had tattoos. The best evidence of tattoos in ancient Egypt come from several female mummies dated to around 2000 BC. Prior to the discovery of Ötzi, these were the earliest known tattoos on actual human bodies.
Mummy in the British Museum ( CC BY-SA 3.0 )
The tattoos on these mummies, as well as some later ones, can be found on their abdomens, the top of their thighs, and their breasts, thus some scholars have suggested that these tattoos were the mark of prostitutes. Others believe that the tattoos were meant to protect the women from sexually transmitted diseases. Alternatively, the tattoos could have served as a form of protection during a woman’s pregnancy and labor. This view is supported, for instance, by the fact that small figures of the god Bes (who was regarded as the protector of women in labor) have been found on the top of the mummies’ thighs.
Ancient Chinese and Japanese Tattooing
In some parts of the ancient world, tattoos did not function as protective amulets, but as markers of shame and humiliation. In ancient China and Japan, for instance, the perpetrators of certain crimes were branded with tattoos on their faces.
According to the teachings of Confucius, the body is regarded as a parental gift. Given the importance placed by Confucius on honoring and respecting one’s ancestors and parents, any mutilation of the body, including tattooing, was perceived as barbarous. Since tattoos were permanent, the tattooing of a criminal was a life sentence, and such offenders were relegated to the fringes of society for the rest of their lives.
A tattooed man's back, c. 1875 ( Public Domain )
Greek’s Tattoo History
Tattoos were also used by some ancient societies as a mark of possession. According to the Greek historian, Herodotus, for example, the Thebans who surrendered to the Persians at Thermopylae were branded with tattoos:
“and at Xerxes’ orders quite a large number of them, beginning with their commander Leontiadas, were branded with the king’s mark.”
In addition, slaves were also marked with tattoos. In one of the more bizarre stories of Herodotus’ The Histories , Xerxes is said to have ‘enslaved’ the Hellespont following a storm that destroyed the bridge that was built over it,
“He (Xerxes) ordered his men to give the Hellespont three hundred lashes and to sink a pair of shackles into the sea. I once heard that he also dispatched men to brand the Hellespont as well.”
Part of the Gladiator Mosaic, displayed at the Galleria Borghese. It dates from approximately 320 AD. The Ø symbol (possibly Greek theta, for thanatos) marks a gladiator killed in combat. ( Public Domain )
This practice was adopted by the Greek, and later by the Romans as well. This made it impossible for a runaway slave to go unnoticed, as he would be immediately recognized by his markings. This type of branding, however, was banned during the early 4th century AD, in accordance with the teachings of Christianity.
Featured image: [Left] Goddess Council 4900-4750 BC Neolithic Culture of Cucuteni-Tripolye exposed in Cucuteni Museum of Piatra Neamt (CC BY-SA 3.0 ). Filipino Bontoc warrior bearing a Head hunter’s 'Chaklag' Tattoo ( Public Domain ). Baiga tattoos (CC BY-SA 3.0 )
By Ḏḥwty
References
Dwelly, J., 2015. History of tattoos. [Online]
Available at: http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/body-art/history-of-tattooing.htm
Herodotus, The Histories ,
[Waterfield, R. (trans.), 1998. Herodotus’ The Histories . Oxford: Oxford University Press.]
Lineberry, C., 2007. Tattoos. [Online]
Available at: http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/tattoos-144038580/?all
Smith, M. E., 2016. History of Tattooing. [Online]
Available at: http://people.howstuffworks.com/culture-traditions/body-art/history-of-tattooing.htm
Tattoo Temple, 2016. Despite immense popularity, the practice has not left much of an historical record. [Online]
Available at: http://tattootemple.hk/history-of-tattooing
Tattoo You, 2016. A Brief History of Tattoos. [Online]
Available at: http://www.powerverbs.com/tattooyou/history.htm
TheTattooCollection.com , 2016. The History of Tattoos. [Online]
Available at: http://www.thetattoocollection.com/history_of_tattoos.htm
Ancient Tools For Tattooing Beginners
Australian archaeologists have examined prehistoric obsidian tools from the Nanngu site in the Solomon Islands and have determined they may have been used for tattooing people. The 3,000-year-old chips of volcanic glass-like rock have residues of ochre, charcoal and blood and traces of wear that the researchers replicated by using other pieces of obsidian to make tattoos on pigskin.
The authors of a study in the Journal of Archaeological Science say because bodies decay, there is little prehistoric evidence of tattooing anywhere in the world. They cite the body of Otzi the Iceman, a naturally mummified man whose body hikers found in the European Alps in the 1990s. Otzi lived more than 5,000 years ago and had many well-preserved tattoos on his body.
Wrist tattoos on Otzi the Iceman ( radiolab.org)
“It is very difficult to trace the ancient history and geographical distribution of this practice across the globe because such excellent preservation is exceptional,” wrote Nina Kononenko and her colleagues. “Since tattooing is integral to many recent Pacific societies, it is particularly important to trace the prehistory of tattooing in relation to wider social changes. A useful approach might be to target archaeological finds of implements used for tattooing, although to date these have also been extremely rare, probably because perishable materials were often used.”
The article they wrote goes into great detail about their 26 experiments during four months in 2015 that involved fashioning obsidian tools and the conclusions they draw about the use-wear patterns from their tattooing pieces of pigskin.
“The case study reinforces the importance of the experimental results for the identification of skin modification in other parts of the world,” they wrote.
They compared the new tools they used to the ancient ones they suspected of having been used for tattooing or bloodletting in Ranngu in prehistoric times and found similar wear patterns, including rounding, blunting, chipping and scratching.
These tools, which had traces of blood, ochre and fat, were found at the Nanngu site and date to around 3,000 years ago. (Journal of Archaeological Science photo)
It’s possible the Solomon Islanders made tattoos for social, medical or ritual practices.
They say there were a few types of tattooing techniques in the islands. One was to make incisions and rub pigment into the skin. Another was to sketch the design on the skin in charcoal or ochre pigments and then make incisions. Another was to pierce the skin, either with the pigment on the point of the tool or on the skin.
Tools consisted of simple ones like those in Melanesia and the complex, multi-toothed tools of Polynesia, they wrote, adding:
Simple tattooing implements of natural plant thorns, fish spines, or pointed bones were used for skin puncture, whereas single sharp blades made of obsidian, quartz, chert or bamboo made incisions and/or punctures. Multi-toothed tattooing tools were usually made from perishable materials—typically mammal or large bird bone.
Study co-author Robin Torrence told Live Science that the English word tattoo comes from the Polynesian word tatau and that tattooing has been an important cultural practice in the Pacific islands.
A portrait of a Maori chief by Sydney Parkinson, the artist on Captain Cook’s 18 th century voyages; the Maori inhabit New Zealand, which is not far from the Solomons. ( Wikimedia Commons )
Tattoo anthropologist Lars Krutak has an article online titled The Art of Nature: Tattoo History of Western Oceania that includes a section on the Solomon Islands.
Dr. Krutak says the islanders of Western Oceania began arriving around 2000 BC from Southeast Asia. Body marking was usually done by a priestly class of men in Polynesia or women in Micronesia and Fiji. Dr. Krutak writes:
The Solomon Islands are an expansive island chain running roughly north to south that includes both Melanesian (scarification) and Polynesian (tattooing) cultural elements of body modification. Invariably, avian and ichthyian (fish) tattoo patterns seem to dominate the artistic repertoire of Solomon peoples and perhaps none more so than the frigate bird which was also used in the construction of tattooing tools here as it was in Micronesia.
More specifically, in some areas of the Solomons it was believed that the guardian of the land of the dead inspected the deceased for his or her frigate bird mark. If the deceased did not have the tattoo, they were not allowed to pass into the afterlife.
Tikopian tattoo motifs from the Solomon islands, 1930: a) Frigate bird wings; b) triangle; c) pounder or coconut frond spathe; d) annelid; e) flower of the farakau tree; f, h) shark designs; g) tooth pattern; i) large fish pattern; j, k) small fish patterns. (Image courtesy of www.larskrutak.com)
Video demonstrating traditional tattooing methods in the Philippines:
Ancient Tools For Tattooing Near Me
Top image: Women of Rennell Island in the Solomons, drawn by Norman H. Hardy ( Wikimedia Commons )
Ancient Chinese Tattooing Techniques
By Mark Miller