Atlas Sleeve

This gorgeous Atlas was created by Holly Ellis out of San Francisco, CA and comes from TattooNow.com. In the failed revolt of the Titans against the Olympians Zeus determined that Atlas would forever bear the heavens on his shoulders as punishment. Later, along came Hercules who, in the course of his Twelve Labors, needed the apples of the Hesperides. Now, the Hesperides are four nymphs, and daughters of Atlas, who live in a magical garden guarded by a dragon. Now, said apples aren't just any old apples. They were a wedding gift from Gaia upon the marriage of Zeus and Hera. And that dragon? Oh, it just has a hundred heads, that's all. Hercules tricked Atlas into getting the apples by saying that he would hold the heavens in exchange. Then Hercules tricked Atlas again by saying that if Atlas would just take back the heavens for a moment then Hercules could place a strip of cloth over his shoulders to ease the burden. And poor, dumb, long-suffering Atlas fell for it and took the heavens back at which point Hercules trundled off. I always wondered what Atlas would have said after he realized his mistake. Probably something greatly undignified and hilarious.

Lakshmi Back Piece

This gorgeous Lakshmi tattoo comes from here. Lakshmi is the goddess of good fortune and beauty and, like another goddess of beauty, was born from the foam at the Churning of the Ocean. She is the consort of Vishnu and mother of Kama, god of love.

Greco-Roman Back Piece

This amazing back piece comes from Rank My Tattoos. It appears to be Zeus/Jupiter in the center with his lightning bolt, Aphrodite/Venus in lower left being born from the foam in the classic Botticelli pose, Hephaistos/Vulcan toiling away in the lower right, a scorpion in the upper left and another god, perhaps Apollo in the upper right. Very nice. I can't help but wonder what this would've looked like in color. Be sure to click the image to see the larger version.

Zoso Wizard

If you don't already know, and I pity you if you don't, this is the wizard from Led Zeppelin IV also known as Zoso. I don't know why this individual chose to reverse it but, oh well, it looks awesome! Not sure where this originates, it's just been living in my photos for a while.

And just for the fun of it, here's the lyrics to "Misty Mountain Hop" from said album.

Walkin' in the park just the other day, baby,
What do you, what do you think I saw?
Crowds of people sittin' on the grass with flowers in their hair said,
"Hey, Boy, do you wanna score?"
And you know how it is.
I really don't know what time it was, woh, oh,oh
so I asked them if I could stay awhile.

I didn't notice but it had got very dark and I was really
Really out of my mind.
Just then a policeman stepped up to me and asked us, said, "Please,hey,
would we care to all get in line, Get in line."
Well, you know, they asked us to stay for tea and have some fun; Oh, oh,oh.
he said that his friends would all drop by, ooh.

Why don't you take a good look at yourself and describe what you see,
and baby, baby, baby, do you like it?
There you sit, sitting spare like a book on a shelf rustin',
ah, not trying to fight it.
You really don't care if they're comin'; oh, oh,
I know that it's all a state of mind.

If you go down in the streets today, baby, you better,
you better open your eyes. WOAH WOAH YEAH
Folk down there really don't care, really don't care, don't care , really don't , which, which way the pressure lies,
so I've decided what I'm gonna do now.
So I'm packing my bags for the Misty Mountains
where the spirits go now,
over the hills where the spirits fly.
I really don't know.

You've eaten Gotham's wealth. Its spirit. Your feast is nearly over.

Pacheco.

Rawr.

Here, kitty, kitty! Douglas Billion.

Too Hoot To Handle

Another tattoist submission, Cody Collins sent in this owl and umbrella-ella-ella-ey-ey-ey-ey. Ahem.

A Hoot Full Of Love

This time, a tattoist submission, from Kristin Young of Majestik Tattoo, Tucson, AZ.

Central Hooter

Another reader submission, this from Chris Flynn, done at Divine Line, San Antonio.

Threesome

Three completely different styles, all from the same needle, courtesy of Phil Young.

New Blog Header!

...and its all thanks to this awesome Tim Harris rendition of a classic Gil Elvgren piece.

Happy Holidayz

Get some custom one off vans or chucks for a gift for someone. Ask for Sefa, (JOJO)

Happy holidays to you and your families! HBcrew

We also have gift certificates for sale. 

Uffington Horse

The Uffington White Horse is considered by many to be the oldest hill figure in all of Britain. It's carved out of the chalk escarpment and measures 374 feet in length. It dates back to the Bronze Age, about 1000 BCE. Since it dates from that long ago it must have been built by pagans. (At least that seems obvious to me.) This tattoo came from The Science Tattoo Emporium.

Fairy Back Piece

Well, you knew it had to happen sooner or later. So I'm finally posting a fairy tattoo. This gorgeous fairy comes from TattooArtists.com

Everyone looks up to you. They listen to you. If you tell them to fight, they'll fight.

Dave Waugh

Oh, and by the way, the suit, it wasn't cheap. You oughta know, you bought it.

Mac

Strawberry Blonde

Jamie Schene takes on an Elvgren.

Don't Break My Hoot

Josh Fracker

Enki

Here's a nifty tattoo of Enki, one of the heavy hitters of the Sumerian pantheon. This tattoo comes from here. And just for the fun of it I thought I'd include the original Enki stele. Note the water streaming forth from his body. He's a god of water in a desert area so he's a pretty important dude, hence the crown and throne. I'd think that if I got a similar tattoo I would've included the water. But, eh, to each his own.

Amazing Odin

This gorgeous Odin comes from Skysinger's Flickrstream.

Old Man Winter

This impressive frosty guy comes from TattooArtists.org.

Chilly Ink

This wintery tattoo was done by Stevie G. at Pair-A-Dice Tattoo out of Juneau, Alaska. Be sure to check out the site as they've got a nice gallery of great art. As always, click through for the larger version and note the big spiral in the background.

Bare Tree

This neat tattoo was done by Nik Lensing of Fluid Ink Tattoos in St Paul, MN. and comes from About.com.

The Greeks are Coming

This looks to be a Spartan soldier in the front with a huge Spartan helmet in the background with the Parthenon in the back left and maybe Nike, goddess of victory on the far left. Very nice. As most of us know the Spartans were the badasses of the ancient Greek world. Just for a little taste: they were only considered men when they murdered a slave and weren't caught doing it. Be sure to click through to see the details.

Platinum Blonde

A classic take on Elvgren by Mike De Vries.

We're going to kill each other, aren't we? Perhaps you'll kill me. Perhaps I'll kill you. Perhaps sooner. Perhaps later.

Unknown, culled from ModBlog.

Hoot Tamale

Unknown.

Good Pin-up Bad Pin-up

I was hoping not to include bad tattoo art in this blog, but this, from Horrible Tattoos was too good to pass up. I particularly like his caption...

"Are you sure that my tattoo will look exactly like this one ?"
"Sure, sure relax..."

North American Indian Ink

The story of body art in North America is one of fascinating religious and spiritual significance. The art of tattoo was so widespread among North American Indians that it could justifiably be considered universal. Although many of the uses and features of tattoo were similar among various tribes they were not identical. Generally tattoos were used for four main reasons: to mark rites of passage, to signify one's clan or tribe, for healing and pain relief and to warn of a warriors abilities and therefore intimidate the enemy. The methods to apply their tattoos were generally the same throughout North America and usually consisted of sharpened bones or thorns used to pierce or puncture the skin into which a darkening agent was then applied. In 1653 the Jesuit missionary Francois-J. Bressani recorded methods used by the natives of eastern Canada:

In order to paint permanent marks on themselves they undergo intense pain. To do this they use needles, sharpened awls, or thorns. With these instruments they pierce the skin and trace images of animals or monsters, for example an eagle, a serpent, a dragon, or any other figure they like, which they engrave on their faces, their necks, their chests, or other parts of their bodies. Then, while the punctures which form the designs are fresh and bleeding, they rub in charcoal or some other black color which mixes with the blood and penetrates the wound. The image is then indelibly imprinted on the skin. This custom is so widespread that I believe that in many of these native tribes it would be impossible to find a single individual who is not marked in this way. When this operation is performed over the entire body it is dangerous, especially in cold weather. Many have died after the operation, either as the result of a kind of spasm which it produces, or for other reasons. The natives thus die as martyrs to vanity because of this bizarre custom.

If we discount Bressani's obvious lack of understanding regarding the spiritual significance of tattoos we learn a great deal about the application process. To the left we see Haida tattoo needles collected in 1883. Note how similar, yet shorter, the tools are compared to traditional foot long Japanese tattoo tools.

Tattoos for rites of passage typically signified a persons first step into adulthood. These tattoos usually consisted of lines and geometric patterns. Arapaho men tattooed three dots on their own chest to prove their manhood. Tattoos for young women were often placed on the chin and immediately told the viewer her background and marital status. To the right we see a Mojave woman with impressive facial tattoos and body art. Most rite of passage tattoos were placed upon puberty but sometimes death as well. Some tribes, including the Sioux, held that after death as a "ghost warrior" made his way to the spirit world he would be met by an old woman who would demand to see his tattoos. If the individual was unfortunate enough not to have any ink he would be denied passage to the other side and, along with his horse, be thrown back down to the Earth, doomed to wander aimlessly for eternity. This was such a strongly held belief that many elders, who had not been previously tattooed, would be tattooed as they lay on their death beds.

The natives of the Northwest Coast, including the Haida and Tlinglit, used crest tattoos to signify their clan's territory and distinguish between members of different social groups. Crests could include land and sea animals as well as geographical features and heavenly bodies. They could also include natural materials like clay or copper. To the left we see an 1886 photograph of a Haida man with a bear crest on his chest and dogfish on each arm. These crests not only told the viewer to what family group a person came from but that the person "owned" that crest and its associated usage in stories, songs and personal names. It could also denote ones ownership of a particular geographical area and the accompanying resources. While these images were not themselves worshiped they were symbols of the magical connection between the people, the land and the animals and the ancestors who won and wore them in the past.

Warriors were often known to bear tattoos signifying their personal strength and skills as well as how many kills they'd made. Jesuits reported in 1663 that an Iroquois chief had 60 tattoos on his thighs, each one representing a man he had killed with his own hands. Among the Chickasaw, and presumably other tribes, the best warriors could be easily recognized by their tattoos. Tattoos were also used for therapeutic reasons among many tribes. The Ojibwa were known to tattoo the temples, forehead and cheeks of those suffering from either toothaches or headaches. Believing the pain was caused my malevolent spirits songs and dances would be performed as part of the tattoo ceremony. The Menoltiini and many other tribes also used tattoos for curative purposes. To the right we see Sa Ga Yeath Qua Pieth Tow, King of the Maquas, by John Verelst. He was one of four Mohawk chiefs who, in 1710, visited London as part of a delegation to Queen Anne.

From kids reaching puberty to warriors frightening their enemies the history of tattoo among North American Indians is fascinating to say the least. And although historical information regarding North American Indian tattoo is scant, and images even harder to find, I hope I've provided an interesting overview of its history. For more information please visit the following sites: Draadlogger Tattoo History, North American First Nations Tattoo History and America's Tattooed Indian Kings.

Sassafras Hoots

Holy owl-verload, Tyler James Densley! Another tattoist submission too. Awesome stuff!