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U.S. NAVY TATTOO - The United States Navy has a history that is completely entwined with the history of tattoo in this country. ?Sailor tattoos? are largely the tattoos of naval personnel and no small amount of them symbolize their branch of military service. Although naval and maritime tattoos are incredibly variable, the letters U. S. N. or the distinct white sailor’s cap can help to particularly identify the Navy, as opposed to something which is more broadly nautical. However the ANCHOR is the preeminent Navy symbol, both in the service and in tattoo. Read More About Military Tattoos |
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VENUS TATTOO - The Venus, sometimes also called the Aphrodite, of Willendorf is a small limestone statue that is one of the earliest pieces of prehistoric human artwork known, dated to ca. 28,000 to 25,000 B. C. E. Her large belly and breasts, with little detail given to much else, have led to her interpretation as fertility figure and have also played some part in theories about early goddess cults. |
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WOLF TATTOO - The wolf, although it is a predatory pack animal, is sometimes shown in tattoo art as solitary and baying at the moon, many times with a Native American theme. Wherever this animal occurs in the world, though, it has been the subject of fables and myths which portray it as cunning and ferocious. In Norse mythology the chief God, Odin, must slay the mighty wolf Fenris but is himself killed in the process. Occasionally, though, wolves will suckle human children who generally go on to fulfill some special destiny, such as Romulus and Remus and even Genghis Khan. |
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XXX TATTOO - A triple "X" in tattoo design is sometimes a sign on a bottle to show that it contains alcohol. The "XXX" in this case originated from the marks that were painted on alcohol barrels to show the number of times that they had been used. Three uses marked that the alcohol barrel had reached the end of its life. The triple X has also been used to rate adult material, especially movies, a system originated in the 1950s. Because the use of an "X" rating to describe movies with adult content was escalating to "XX" and "XXX" and because it was increasingly linked with pornography, the rating was changed in 1990 to NC-17 "No one 17 and under admitted." |
Tattoo design excerpts from the Tattoo Encyclopedia: A Guide to Choosing Your Tattoo
by Terisa Green and Greg James
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