Ancient Egyptian Tattoos And The Origin Of Art And Body Art

Superior Essays
Body art has been around for centuries. It has been a way to express ourselves, express our affection, or to express our social status. Whether it was permanent or temporary it has been a part of our society and has affected how society views people. The ancient Egyptians really brought tattooing to life and it has been ever blooming since then. Originally, tattoos were believed to have begun some time around 2000 B.C. In 1991, however, scientist discovered a mummy that they dated to be around 5,200 years old. The mummy had small tattoos scattered around its body. This meant that the earliest tattoos were now from 3350 B.C. to 3100 B.C. (The Incredible Age of the Find). This mummy became known as Iceman. Iceman was discovered near the Italian-Austrian …show more content…
Geometric shapes and designs were also occasionally used. The most common places for these tattoos were the lower abdomen and the top of breasts. For this reason, it is believed that these markings called upon the divine to protect the women and unborn child during the pregnancy and during childbirth. As Egypt began to evolve, so did tattooing. Tattoos became more popular, more colors were used, and more imagery came about. Egyptians strong belief in life after death became a strong impact on the tattoos. Tattoos became a dedication or memorial to the gods and goddesses. Tattoos began to symbolize social status. Pharaohs’ power and authority was displayed through symbols and images depicting the gods and goddesses. Animals, which were held in high regard, were depicted in artwork as well as tattoos. The Egyptians began using more bright and vibrant colors rather than the dark colors they had been using. Colors had meaning behind them. Red indicated outdoor working youth, while yellow would indicate indoor working women. The deity, or supreme beings, had tattoos using gold or blue coloring. This was because those colors were more rare therefore reserved for those who deserved it most. Black was used for royalty and also represented fertility (The History of Egyptian Tattoos and Their Influence on Modern Day Body …show more content…
O’Reilly’s version was an improvement of Thomas Edison’s patented machine for “Improvement in Autographic Printing.” Tattoo guns have evolved since then becoming lighter and less painful. The guns have advanced so that the artist can control the speed of the needle, the depth, and its pressure. The most recently patented machine, patented in 2008, is lighter, easier, and more effective (Gilman). In earlier eras, tattoos became more of a man thing. Unlike ancient Egyptian culture, where it was primarily a woman thing, men tended to get tattoos more than women. Tattoos, because of pain that was involved, took a manlier role because men were noted to be stronger and capable of handling the pain. Also tattoos received the reputation for being less respectable. Tattoos were very popular among men in jail and sailors. Today tattoos are a very common among everyone. According to a study done by the Pew Research Center in 2006, approximately 36 percent of Americans ages 18 to 25 have a tattoo and 40 percent between the ages of 26 and 40 have at least one tattoo as well (Tattoo Facts &

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Turkana Boy and Lucy: “Lucy” is the name of a australopith skeleton that dates between 3.9- 3.0 million years ago. The skeleton was discovered in Ethiopia by Donald Johanson in 1974 and Lucy’s skeleton revealed that australopiths were good bipedalists sparking a search for more evidence on the origins of humans. Turkana Boy had a similar impact as the most complete early human skeleton ever found. His skeleton was found in Kenya by Kamoya Kimeu in 1984. Monsoons: For india, monsoons are vital as they provide the much needed moisture for agriculture.…

    • 703 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Lee Smith Tattoo Summary

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In the Nursing Standard article, a male student Lee Smith who has been a healthcare assistant for eight years talks about his tattoos. He mentions that he thought that his body art would cause controversy before he started working as a nurse. Although he concluded that it did not discomfort his patients and was mostly just asked several questions about them. The tattoos he had were located on either end of his neck, a very noticeable place. His tattoos were inoffensive as he had both of his daughter's initiation printed.…

    • 429 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Great Essays

    Ötzi was a European man from around the Austria/Italy border. He died buried underneath a glacier in the Alpine mountains and unintentionally his body was mummified. Ötzi is important to the history of tattoos not only because he has the oldest known tattoo, but because he has 61 distinguishable total tattoos on his almost 5,300 year old body. He has tattoos on his torso, legs, lower back, and wrists. Unlike tattoos of today, it doesn’t appear that the Iceman’s tattoos were works of art.…

    • 1962 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Pros Of Tebori Tattoos

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Tattoos have been around for centuries. The art of tattooing is done in a multitude of different ways. Some methods are much more primitive than others. For example, Tebori is an ancient Japanese tattooing style that has very few artists. In Tebori, the artist uses a sharp bamboo stick and repeatedly stabs it into the skin of the canvas.…

    • 469 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    By elevating the historical aspect of tattoos, readers may feel a sense of newfound interest and hence may become increasingly attentive to Day’s contrast between the ancient significance of tattoos with its present, lacklustre symbolism. She describes such tattoos as signifying “ownership and brutality”, which connote a…

    • 1267 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    As marriage signifies a lifelong commitment to one person, tattoos have the same significance to the wearer: for their family, religion or associations. People often use tattoos as a medium to honor, remember, and represent their family ties. A Portrait tattoo of a deceased loved one is an intimate form of honoring them. Figure 1 is an example…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Is a Tattoo Right for You? Style is changing as society changes, something that is becoming more popular is tattoos. Tattoos are becoming more of a common fashion icon not only does it make you stand out from the majority but there can even be a meaningful story told behind the tattoo but not always. When getting a tattoo there should always be some things to consider prior. Tattoos are a great way to express certain things in your life or just simply put something permanent on your body but depending on where it is and or what it is can be the reason why you did not get that job you wanted.…

    • 524 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Lebanon Tattoo Culture

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Second off, tattoos can affect relationships. If the family doesn't approve on getting tattoos, then the tattoo can make your family angry at you for having one. In conclusion, people should not get tattoos at a young age because it will affect their future jobs and relationships in a terrible…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The meaning of tattoo practices in the U.S. has greatly changed over time. When the popularization of tattoos began in the 1970’s, it was not widely accepted. Since then, Americans have gradually grown fonder of tattoos, especially the younger generations. Tattoos have various meanings. Depending on the person, it may serve as a symbol of rebellion, commitment, or art.…

    • 756 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a tattoo is defined as “an indelible mark or figure fixed upon the body by insertion of pigment under the skin or by production of scars.” Tattooing and body modification has been practice dating back to Eurasian Neolithic farmers in 4000 BC, thought to be a healing remedy based on the particular placement on the arms, legs and throughout the body consisting of various dots and lines. In today’s culture, the idea of getting a tattoo has shifted from the healing benefits to primitive symbols depicting a story or to simply add a unique detail to ones skin. “A tattoo is more then a painting on skin; its meaning and reverberations cannot be comprehended without a knowledge of the history and mythology…

    • 1077 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    First Tattoo Anthropology

    • 1946 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The world has realized that “tattoos [are] a more accepted form of expression” (Brown 1). He goes onto say that this certain “stigma” has been erased from tattoos, no longer are they a representation of trashiness. People have started to become more aware that tattooing is just another artistic expression just as much as painting…

    • 1946 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Tattoo Health Benefits

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Health Benefits of Tattoos Are there any good things that come from tattoos? Most people do not believe that good can come from them. As a result of tattoos, joint pain can be reduced, the immune system can be strengthened, and positive chemical responses can be triggered. Tattoos have multiple medical benefits. Joint pain can be reduced from the help of tattoos.…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Atkinson writes, “towards the end of the nineteenth century, white North Americans shared with Europeans a similar fascination toward and repulsion from tattooed bodies” (Atkinson, 2003). Often times, tattooed people in the carnivals would falsify stories about being forcefully tattooed in order to explain their heavily tattooed appearance. Through these stories, tattoos became visible markers of brutality (Atkinson, 2003). At this point in time, tattooed people served as the direct opposition to modernity, and were thus thought of as savage, which further perpetuated the negative…

    • 1230 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Inked: Informative Speech Outline General Purpose: The general purpose of this speech is to inform about tattoo culture. Specific Purpose: I wish to convey to the class the evolution of society’s perspective of tattoo culture. Thesis Statement: In this presentation, I will inform you on the change in perspective of tattoo culture over time, from the Ancient Era, to the Modern Era, and finally, to the Postmodern Era. Introduction 1.…

    • 838 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Tattoos have been around for quite some time now and play a major part in society. However, there is an unwritten law stating that tattoos in the work place are unacceptable. In the United States 42% of adults have at least one or more tattoos. Yet, 73% of people say they would hire staff that had visible tattoos. Discrimination of tattoos in the work place is an outdated trend among companies in today’s society.…

    • 951 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays

Related Topics