The Egyptians apparently practiced the art. Tattoos are found on their mummified remains and show up on artwork dating to over four thousand years ago. The Romans didn’t share the Egyptians' enthusiasm, instead using tattoos to brand their criminals. It wasn’t until they went up against the fierce Britons, whose painted bodies scared the bejesus out of them that they came to appreciate the intimidating nature of tattoos.
But it was the Pacific Islanders who really set the trend. In fact, the word “tattoo” originated from the Tahitian word “tatau,” meaning “to tap a mark into the body.” The facial tattoos of Maori warriors were so impressive that a burgeoning trade in their decorated heads cropped up among Europeans in the early 1800s. The heads were in such demand that traders would capture members of the tribe, tattoo their faces, kill them, decapitate them, and trade the heads for guns. Ain’t Colonialism grand?
Tattoos are not always permanent. Henna tattoos, which are created using the pigment of the Lawsonia tree, have also been in use for thousands of years across Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, and parts of Asia. The decorative painting of hands and feet is commonly tied to marriage customs. In fact in India, the longevity of the tattoos is believed to be directly tied to how well the bride will be treated by her in-laws. If the paint fades quickly, she’s in for a rough ride.
My father, a captain in the Navy, sported numerous tattoos. His were gray and faded, but I can still picture the rooster inscribed on his calf – a talisman against drowning. When he underwent bypass surgery, the surgeon tasked with harvesting the veins from his leg was careful to suture the rooster back together. The bisection made the bird that much more interesting.
But tattoos are just one of many ways humans throughout the ages have adorned their bodies. Native Americans chose a more temporary route. They would create colorful paints from various plants and decorate their bodies with beautiful geometric designs (check out the beautiful artwork by my friend, Theodore Morris). And they didn’t stop with the skin. They would also use parts of animals – feathers, teeth, claws – to hang from their bodies, as a way of symbolically associating themselves with attributes of the critter.
Body art is directly tied to self-expression and has deep roots in human culture. Tattoos, like other forms of adornment, are a means of sending social signals. They say something about our beliefs, our world view, and how we view ourselves.
As for me, I inked up a few years ago, once I had reached the point where my stint as a bioarchaeologist equaled the years I spent as an Orlando firefighter. So I had a gifted artist, Cesar, create a symbol of my two careers. What does it look like, you ask? You see it every time you visit my site. It’s a seven thousand-year-old skull sporting my leather fire helmet and it exemplifies two of my greatest achievements in life: the grueling years I spent as a firefighter and the sweat and toil it took to obtain my PhD. I wear it with pride.