Business & Finance

Tattoos have been around for thosuands of years so tattoos are nothing new. They may have become quite fashionable in recent years but our generation is definitely not the first to have tattoos to display. Mummified bodies that date back to around 3000 B.C. have been found with marks on their bones that indicate that they may well have had tattoos.

So what about the word tattoo? It is thought that it comes from the Tahitian word “tattau”. This word literally means “To mark” which when you think about it, makes sense since a tattoo involves marks on the skin. Way back in the 18th and 19th century Tattoos were rediscovered by Europeans when during their explorations they came across the Polynesians and American Indians who bore tattoos when tattoos were very uncommon in Europe and the United States where they were amazed by the Polynesians and Indians who appeared to be covered in tattoos.

Everybody who gets a tattoo has their own reasons for doing so but these days it is mostly for decoration. The Roman Empire used tattoos to designate status for cerain groups of society. Criminals and slaves had tattoos which showed their status to warn others not to treat them with the respect a freeman would be entitled to.

The methods of tattooing have changed little over the centuries though modern equipment is much better at doing the job. The original method was by pricking the skin with a pointed object and then rubbing in the ink and later it was found that scratches could be used to add morre color to the designs. Modern tattoo equipment injects the pigment with a needle.

In the past you had to accept a tattoo design with which the tattoo artist was familiar. You depended on his knowledge of designs. Now we have the internet and this has revolutionized the choice of designs available to you. You can simply go online and select from thousands of printable tattoo designs to find the one you like best. Once selected you print it out and take it to your local tattooist who can copy it onto your skin.