Beltaine Sun and Moon

Beltaine Ink

This lovely tattoo comes from the even lovelier Larissa who made a great May Queen for some recent Beltaine festivities I attended. It was inked at Electric Voodoo Tattoo in Springfield, Missouri. This tattoo is just the first in a series of many great tattoos I was able to snap photos of while celebrating the day. I hope you all had as good a Beltaine as I did!

Triple Spirals, Again

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This gorgeous tattoo comes from the Flickrstream of Chris dB and is licensed under Creative Commons.

Yeah, it's another tattoo of spirals. And it's another tattoo of a triple spiral similar to those at Newgrange. What can I say? I'm a junkie.

Fireworks Ink

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This groovy tattoo comes from the Flickrstream of EpicFireworks and is licensed under Creative Commons.

Hey folks, I've been really busy with the holidays, as everyone else has I imagine. Anyway, back to blogging now. Happy New Year!

Orion

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This tattoo interpretation of the constellation Orion comes from the Flickrstream of Xtrarant and is licensed under Creative Commons.

This gorgeous tattoo was inked by Conan Lea of Voluta Tattoo out of Indianapolos, Indiana.

The photo of the actual Orion constellation comes from here; my Google search tells me it's free to use.

Orion is a popular figure from Greek mythology slain either by the goddess Artemis or the Scorpion that would become the constellation Scorpio. History doesn't provide us much source material concerning Orion but we do know that he was a giant man who served as a hunter and was honored as a hero.

Beautiful Phoenix

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This gorgeous photo comes from the Flickrstream of Kurt Elster and is licensed under Creative Commons.

Depending on who you ask the phoenix is of ancient Phoenician or Egyptian origin only later being appropriated by the Greeks. According to lore the phoenix can be multi-colored and live for about 500-1000 years. When the phoenix reaches the end of its life cycle it builds a nest out of myrrh twigs and then burns up. The ashes, of course, are from what the newborn phoenix emerges. For this reason the phoenix has long been identified with eternal life, resurrection and the purifying characteristics of fire.

The myrrh is also significant as the sap, or resin of the myrrh tree, was used in embalming and burned as incense during funerals as well as other sacred rites of pagan as well as Judeo-Christian religions. Myrrh was so highly prized in the ancient world that is was often worth more than its weight in gold.

Alchemical Elements

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These tattoos come from the Flickrstream of Notquitetrish and is listed as All Rights Reserved but is featured here by kind permission of the owner. (Thanks!)

These tattoos feature the alchemical symbols for the four elements. The top tattoo represents Earth and the next is Air followed by Fire. The next is the symbol for Water followed by the astrological symbol for Leo the Lion.

Dragon Back Piece

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This groovy dragon tattoo comes from the Flickrstream of Mcwont and is licensed under Creative Commons.

This is another Eastern type of dragon as it has no wings but still magically flies through the air. Notice the Earth clutched in one hand and the Yin Yang in the other. Yin Yang is a concept of Chinese philosophy that states that apparently opposing forces, qualities, characteristics, etc., are connected and give rise to each other and are both contained within all things. They seem to work against each other but cannot exist without the other. This philosophy carries over a lot into neopaganism-especially the idea that a male deity alone is a nonsensical idea thus giving rise to goddess worship alongside a male god.

Colorful Eastern Dragon

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This colorful dragon image comes from the Flickrstream of tattoo artist Shannon Archuleta, who works out of San Francisco, California, and is licensed by Creative Commons.

The dragon, whether Eastern or Western style, is one of the most popular of all tattoo images and for good reason. They typically represent fire, air and, above all, strength. The dragon above is one of the Eastern style which usually have no wings but still fly through the air by magical means. We can also tell this is an Eastern dragon because of its long, lithe, sinewy body that curves and bends much like a snake. In the Asian traditions dragons are benevolent creatures often serving as good luck symbols and much used in art throughout history. This is in direct contrast to the European type of dragon which is usually a beast of evil, destruction and fear. In China the dragon is also associated with the weather and is a bringer of rain.

Lady Liberty Pinup

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This tattoo comes from the Flickrstream of Bitchcakesny and is licensed under Creative Commons.

The Statue of Liberty, on which this pinup is obviously based, is itself based on ancient images of the Roman goddess Libertas and the god Apollo. Libertas is a goddess of freedom from slavery, tyranny and oppression. From Wikipedia:

This symbol of Liberty and Freedom is not standing still or at attention in the harbor, it is moving forward, as her left foot tramples broken shackles at her feet, in symbolism of the United States' wish to be free from oppression and tyranny.

The seven rays on her head are said to represent either the seven continents or the seven seas. However, her entire head is very heavily inspired by images of the god Apollo who also often had seven rays of the sun coming from his head and who is closely linked to the sun as well as reason and learning. The torch represents enlightenment.

Happy Fourth of July to my fellow American neopagans!

Wild Back Piece

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This amazing back piece comes from the Flickstream of Wolf94114 and is licensed by Creative Commons.

This back piece was created by artist London Bellman of Atomic Art Tattoo Studio of Portland, Oregon.

I'm lovin' the moons and the owl for obvious reasons. I imagine the human-like figure is based on some badass original art; if anyone knows the origins of the image I'd appreciate a heads up. At any rate, a very nice and extremely unique back piece.

Happy solstice folks!

P.S. For some background about this tattoo be sure to check out the comments!

Pentacle and Moon

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Here's a very pretty tattoo from the Flickrstream of Dmaelus; it is licensed under Creative Commons.

This pentacle tattoo with the moon and clouds in the background makes me kinda think I might get a similar tattoo one day. All of the elements but fire are represented here, with the moon and clouds representing water. The clouds are also representative of air and the pentacle itself is made of wood, so that takes care of earth. And while I think all of the elements should be honored I too would consider excluding an image symbolic of fire within a similar tattoo. Being a watery person all around I have a healthy respect for fire, and all its associations, as well as a great fear of it.

The Oak

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Here's another very nice tattoo from the Flickrstream of tattoo artist Mez Love, this one an oak tree. The text reads: As the roots lie in the soil, Our heritage lies in our name, wise words to be sure.

June 10 marks the beginning of the Celtic tree month of the oak, the most sacred of the many trees revered by the Druids. Among the ancient Celts, as well as the Greeks and the Romans, oak leaves were worn as status symbols. As one of the largest and oldest trees, often living over 200 years, the oak is considered a repository of wisdom and sacred knowledge. As the oak tends to be very tall is often attracts lightning and is thus linked with the Dagda, ruler of the Tuatha de Danann (children of the goddess Danu, foundress of the race of Irish-Celtic gods). The Dagda is a god of the earth, treaties and magic as well as war and, you guessed it, lightning.

Fire Ambigram:Update

Edit: Hey folks, there was a really neat tattoo here (see the comments). If you want to see it go visit the Flickrstream of Piers.

This tattoo features that lovely, tricky little thing called an ambigram which is a word that looks the same upside down due to its creative font and style. Be sure to check out the above link as he has similar tattoos for each of the elements, not ambigrams but nifty nonetheless.

Today marks the ancient Roman celebration of Vesta, goddess of the home and hearth. I wanted a fireplace tattoo, couldn't find one, but found this instead! Not what I was looking for but pretty damn cool if I do say do myself!

Cute Little Goddess

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This lovely tattoo is also ripped from Rate My Ink. Artist unknown.

Dragon

Aces Tattoo & Body Piercing, Detroit, MI
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The dragon is a nearly universal figure with slightly varying versions occurring the world over. In Western cultures they are often revered but also usually considered evil or dangerous. In the west most dragons have wings that allow for flight while Eastern dragons have no wings but take flight by more magical means. Eastern dragons also tend to be more snakelike with longer bodies. Most dragons breathe fire but others can breathe or spit out gas or even ice. All incarnations of dragons are worthy of respect whether they are negative figures like Tiamat, the evil dragon goddess of the Babylonians or symbols of good luck as in many Eastern cultures.

Ahura Mazda

The tattoo comes from The Science Tattoo Emporium. The relief is from the palace of Xerxes at Persepolis. In Persian mythology Ahura Mazda is the supreme god, the creator of heaven and Earth.

Green Dragon

This nifty dragon comes from Cetta; she is the 23rd person to submit art to NeoPagan Ink! Yay! This tattoo is actually on her husband and was inked by Jim O'Rourke at Gen X Tattoos out of Clevaland, Ohio.

Thanks so much to Cetta for sharing this great dragon!

Dragon and Phoenix

This gorgeous tattoo of a dragon and phoenix comes from JB Welchel's Flickrstream and was created by Loki at Holy Mother Tattoo out of Atlanta, Georgia.

The Four Directions

This nifty tattoo comes from Rambling Rose; she is the 21st person to submit to NeoPagan Ink!

Thanks to Rambling Rose!!