| Because the historical and archaeological records | | | | cultures at every stop along the way. Included in |
| of most forms of body art are incomplete, we | | | | these notes are many references to tattooing. |
| still don't know where and where tattooing | | | | When Banks returned to England in 1771, he |
| originated.Tattooed mummies provide the earliest | | | | disembarked with a permanent memento of his |
| concrete evidence of tattoo, and these have | | | | voyage: the very fist tattoo on a modern |
| been found in various parts of the world, from | | | | Western man!On December 8,1891, the first |
| Nubia to Peru. Probably t he most ancient | | | | electric tattoo machine was registered by |
| tattooed man is the "Iceman", a Bronze Age man | | | | inventor Samuel O'Reilly, at the United States |
| uncovered after being frozen in a glacier on the | | | | Patent Office. He began working out of a barber |
| Tyrolean Alps since 3000 B.C. A tattooed band of | | | | shop in New York City, calling his business a |
| stripes was found on his lower back, a simple | | | | "tattoo parlor" - the first tattoo studio in the |
| cross on the inside of his left knee and more | | | | United States.Soon tattoo parlors were springing |
| stripes on his right ankle.There are many | | | | up all over the country. During the First and |
| examples of tattooing in ancient Egypt, the oldest | | | | Second World Wars, different branches of military |
| found on the mummy of Egyptian priestess of | | | | adopted tattooing as a means of mystical |
| the goddess Hathor at Thebes, Amunet, who | | | | protection, a souvenir or remembrance.In the |
| lived approximately 4000 years ago, she was | | | | mid-1970s, tattooists began holding tattoo |
| tattooed with parallel lines of dots. Because of her | | | | conventions. Tattoo artists from all over the |
| religious status, some archaeologists have | | | | countries gathered together as a group to talk |
| speculated that her body art had spiritual or | | | | shop and show off their work.Due to the |
| magical connotations. Others feel the designs | | | | conventions, magazines, and other kinds of |
| were of sexual nature.Some of the most diverse, | | | | exposure, tattooing began to emerge as a form |
| ornate, and bizarre body art was found in the | | | | of fashion. People started to recognize its artistic |
| mysterious and complex world of Maya between | | | | merit and use it as a way to express personality |
| 300 and 900 A.D. For Maya, body modification, | | | | and religious belief.Charles Darwin, in The Descent |
| whether temporary or permanent, were done for | | | | of Man, observed that "Not one great country |
| spiritual reasons as well as beautification. Full body | | | | can be named, in which the aborigines do not |
| tattoos or facial tattoos, were acquired by men | | | | tattoo themselves." Ancient and modern peoples |
| and women.When Captain James Cook set sail in | | | | have used tattoos as means to a seemingly |
| his Endeavor in 1769, he visited many islands of | | | | infinite number of ends.Today we are experiencing |
| Pacific Ocean, most of which included tattooing as | | | | one of the biggest revivals ever. The combination |
| part of their culture. It's Cook who gave us the | | | | of technology, historical awareness and artistic |
| "tattoo" word based on similar words in Polynesian | | | | ability has taken tattoo to heights never before |
| cultures that were used to describe the | | | | imaged.The starting place for exploring and |
| practice.On board the Endeavor was Sir Joseph | | | | learning all about tattoos, tattoo ideas, tattoo |
| Banks. Along with cataloging many types of animal | | | | design concept, tattoo supplies and equipments. |
| and plant life, Banks documented the indigenous | | | | |