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Tattoo Anthropologist

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October 24, 2015

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Previous article LARS’ Q & A IN SMITHSONIAN SCIENCE

larskrutak

Documenting the History of Tattoo one Mark at a Time
Tattoo Anthropologist / Author / Curator

Lars Krutak
In 2013 I penned a web article THE ART OF NATURE w In 2013 I penned a web article THE ART OF NATURE with details/imagery re: Fijian tattoos and foto'd a Fijian “bone scratcher" or iqia (tattoo tool) @smithsoniannmnh collected in Levuka (1876). The tool (#23597, fotos 1-2) doesn’t show use, comb is damaged. Depending on the region, various hand-tapping tools were used in Fiji: those tipped with comb-like bone/shell blades, citrus thorns (read below), single shark tooth & even steel pins. (Swipe thru for tool types incl. @maacambridge (Z2783.1-19) @pittriversmuseum (1899.6.2.432) mother of pearl comb) ☮️ A range of female tattoos were created as seen here in ca. 1870s illus. of Ra Enge from Tawaleka. Spots at the corners of the mouth noted on some islands the woman had borne children and finger tattoos high-rank. ☮️ As noted in my article, tattooing (veiqia) was only performed by / for women. Charles Wilkes (ca. 1840) wrote: "The women believe tattoo[ing] is a passport to the Other world, where it prevents them from being persecuted by their own sex, numbers of whom, by command of the gods, would meet them, if not tattooed, and, armed with sharp shells, would chase them continually through the lower regions...girls who have died before being tattooed were painted with motifs...thus escaping the anger of the gods." ☮️ According to a local chief (1890s), the tattooist (daubati), “a hereditary priestess," and her assistant (a healer) were "wise women." Tattooing was performed in secret locations in the forest or a cave, and women were usu. tattooed after they had reached puberty prior to marriage. The ancestors were invoked to guide the ceremony. "The woman to be tattooed must fast for 12 hours...and the night before she must fish for freshwater prawns from dark till dawn, and must procure three [or four] lemon thorns to be affixed to [the tattoo tool]...[The tattooist] in a coconut shell prepped the liquid [candlenut soot mixed with water or coconut oil] used for the staining. She blessed the liquid and prayed to the ancestors to soften the skin of the girl so she would not feel much pain." ☮️ For more info visit @veiqia #fiji #polynesian #tatau #tattooartist #tattoo #tribal #oceania #tattootools #inked #women
Yesterday my friends over @archaeologyink posted i Yesterday my friends over @archaeologyink posted images of a Pohnpei tattooing tool, 1883. My memory flashed back to photos I took in 2011 of unused “tattoo rakes” from the same location collected in 1948 by Saul H. Riesenberg, former chairman of the Dept. of Anthro. at the Smithsonian’s NMNH – my former employer. At the time, I was writing an article on Oceania tattoo for my website and surveying the NMNH’s collection for tools and snapped the photos you see here. ☮️ These finely handcrafted tools (cat no. 397781), which may have been commissioned pieces, were described as follows: “Hibiscus stick handle. Hafted at end are orange thorns (in number 3, 6, and 10 resp.) set closely side by side and sewed together to form a comb or rake; thread is fine pandanus rootlets, which run across breadth of comb near points of teeth, a second fiber similarly sewed at their middle, the whole laid against end of handle and attached adze-fashion by lashings and breadfruit gum.” ☮️ “The 3 rakes, of different size (L. 5 ½”, 5 ½”, 6”; diam. ¼”, 3/8” and ¾”) are used for different stages of tattooing.” Enjoy! #pohnpei #micronesia #oceania #oceanic #tattooartist #tattoo #tattootools #handtappingtattoo #handtapping #pasifika #indigenous #tatouage #tatuajes #tatowierung #tatuagem #ancientink #hibiscus #breadfruit #pandanus #comb
Awesome to see the late great sikerei Aman Lau Lau Awesome to see the late great sikerei Aman Lau Lau in the new exhibition "Chamanes" in @cannesfrance and published catalogue which just arrived today!!! These were awesome days/nights spent in your uma and I will never forget our time together with your family! May your spirit always soar... #amanlaulau #mentawaitribe #sikerei #siberut #shaman #chaman #exhibition #cannes #musee #musée #soar #forever #tattoo #tattooartist #indigenous #buttui #catalogue #museumexhibition #museum #france @cotedazur
On Saturday July 22 at 2pm CST/3pm EST the @waukee On Saturday July 22 at 2pm CST/3pm EST the @waukee_library and I will present a virtual lecture on the cultural heritage of tattooing through imagery, sound, and rare documentary footage. The event is free and open to the public but you must register to attend at: https://waukeepubliclibrary.org/events/tattoo-history-online Hope to see you there! #waukee #waukeeiowa #iowa #publiclibrary #tattoo #history #lecture #tatuajes #tatuagem #tatouage #inked #ancient #ink #midwest #tattoos #anthropology #innovation #tradition #warriors @cityofwaukee
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