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Mystery of Mexican Aztec Tattoos

Mexican Aztec tattoos have the most peculiar designs around and are easily recognizable by their geometric patterns. They go back to the times of Mayan, Inca and Aztec civilizations who laid the foundations for present day Mexican tattoos.

The Aztecs were a tribe that lived in the area of what is now the city of Mexico between the 14th and 15th centuries. They were highly religious people and dedicated great deal of their daily time to please the severe gods. But at the same time Aztecs belong to the most advanced ancient civilizations, science and art forms were highly developed as well as the art of tattooing.

The practice of religion only encouraged the development of tattoo art. At those time tattoos were not a mere means of self expression, but as a part of a solemn rite. Tattoos were often done on the wrist, chest or stomach areas and were worn by both grown-ups and children. For instance, young boys and girls usually showed their devolution to some god, by their first tattoo.

Of course, not all tattoos were of religious background. Another function of Aztec tattooing was to differentiate – between tribes, between social classes. They also showed a person’s occupation and rank in society, e.g. warrior tattoos.


Mexican Aztec tattoos are the collection of deep symbols and the display of versatility of their lives. Many of has lead to modern tribal tattoo designs, with the themes of the Sun, the freedom-loving Eagle, the Princess and the Warriors and the Aztec Calendar being the most popular and well-known.

The Sun tattoo was one of the most important ones for it stood for the Aztec main god and symbolized the heavens and the life after death, in which they believed.

Among other designs of Mexican Aztec tattoos are the symbols of the feathered serpent god and the god of weather and fertility as well as the god of warriors who was depicted as an eagle (courage is commonly ascribed to this bird). Less in quantity but still popular nowadays are sun & moon tattoos and tattoos of crosses.

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Tattoo Ideas & Designs > Archive by category 'Tattoo History'
Lion of Judea Tattoo and Its Religious Background
The lion of Judea tattoo has a broad religious background. It is connected with the two widespread world religions: Judaism and Christianity.

The Biblical Judah (or in Hebrew: Yehuda) is the original name of the Tribe of Judah, the Lion itself being an emblem of that Israelite tribe in Old Testament in the Book of Genesis. It was also mentioned in the Book of Revelation.

The winged Lion of Judea tattoo in is symbol of the South. Jews understand the lion as a symbol of power and cruelty. Lion is an emblem of the generation of Jehuda and the regal house of David, and it is also a zodiac sigh of a summer month of av, that carries an exceptional meaning to the fate of Hebrew people.

In Christian tradition, the Lion of Judah symbolizes Jesus. The lion of Judah is used as an emblem or even a name of many Christian ministries and organizations.

In Christianity the symbolism of the Lion is ambivalent: on the one hand it means the regal origin of King of Judea, on the other hand is signifies the ability of the Christ to rescue the Christians from the jaws of a roaring lion that is the devil. The lion is believed to sleep with open eyes and show vigilant surveillance, spiritual watchfulness and strength. The Lion acts as a sentry who maintains the principles of the Church.

Moreover, it is considered that lion cubs are born dead and its parents breathe life in it, that’s why lion also stands for Resurrection.

In addition, the lion of Judea has a close connection to the Rastafarian Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia who was crowned Conquering Lion of the Tribe of Judah. Rastas consider Selassie to be a direct descendant of the Israelite Tribe of Judah I mentioned above. They believe that he belongs to King David and Solomon lineage.

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Tattoo Ideas & Designs > Archive by category 'Tattoo History'
Roman Soldiers’ Tattoo History
For almost two centuries the researches from every corner of the globe have been unsuccessfully trying to explain the motives of sailors and military men for tattooing, but the fact is evident – the tradition goes back to the ancient times. At those times nations and ethnos of various social and national background were aware of identification or distinguishing tattoos and made extensive use of them.

In Ancient Greece and Rome tattooing was connected with barbarian raids. The technology itself was borrowed by Greeks from Persians for labeling thieves and outlaws. It was further borrowed by Romans, who, in their turn, used tattooing for army purposes in order that deserters might be easily identified.

So, in Ancient Rome the tattooing of people became not a mere tradition but a principle of law. Roman soldiers were tattooed – either compulsory or voluntary - according to their duties. For instance, the instructions of West Roman Honorius (384-423 AD) and East Roman Arcady (377-408 AD) told that the armorers of Roman legions were to be forcibly tattooed with special signs.


Each Roman soldiers’ tattoo corresponded to a certain legion’s logo and were done on the soldiers’ arms. The technology was as follows: at first the skin was greased with leek sap as antiseptic, and then ink was tattooed with the help of sharp tools. The ink was composed of pine crust, bronze powder, vitriol and little quantity of leek.

Not only did the Romans tattoo their legions, but also criminals and slaves were tattooed. In this case the word “tattoo” is synonymic to “the brand of disgrace and shame.”

With the introduction of Christianity in Roman Empire tattoo art began to decline. In 325 AD Emperor Konstantin issued a decree never to tattoo faces, but arms and legs, as he thought that the face that was given by God must not be dirtied. In 787 AD Pope Hadrian forbade any other types of tattooed, and all the future Popes fallowed his example. That’s why tattoo art was in fact unknown to the Christian world up to the 19th century.

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Tattoo Ideas & Designs > Archive by category 'Tattoo History'
Welsh Celtic Tattoos, Part 2
We continue to talk about Welsh Celtic tattoos which now face a real revival and are extremely popular. They are abstract, paradoxical, dreary and what’s more important - sacral. Last time we spoke about the well-known Celtic Cross.

Celtic knotwork symbolizes close ties between Life and Place of a human being in the Universe, and has different meanings: Trinity knot stands for the Holy Trinity (now) or means the triplicity of Celtic gods and goddesses; Love knot made of the interlaced symbols of infinity shows the natural unity of two people; and a Spiral Celtic tattoo tells us about the inner state of a person who wears it, about his desire to achieve mental equilibrium.

Celtic Dragon Tattoos

Dragon tattoo design goes back to the times of King Arthur Pendragon, the king from the legends of King Arthur, who ordered to draw a Celtic dragon on his armor, for dragon was a symbol of sovereignty, royal power, wisdom and victory.

Present-day dragon tattoos usually depict a winged creature, but traditionally Celtic dragon is a serpent encircled with classic knotwork. Celtic dragons don’t have wings; they walked on the ground and left tracks known as dragon lines which were believed to conduct cosmic powers. The points of their intersection are the places of concentration of power. Druids searched for such places and erected megaliths there, one of them is Stonehenge.

Celtic Sun Tattoos

The sun was the main object of worshiping among the Celts. The eight-point Celtic sun is a symbol that is difficult to interpret due to the contradictory information. All depends on a myth you find. In one of the Druid myths the Sun symbolized Taranis, the Celtic god of sun, or Belenus, also a god of sun who like Apollo drove the sun across the sky it a chariot. What is in common is that the sun and the circle symbolize the endlessness of the Universe.


Here I also would like to mention one more popular Celtic tattoo design, the Labyrinth, a symbolic representation of way that leads us to our inner world and to spiritual basis of everything on the Earth. It symbolizes continuity and interdependence of all the things in the Universe.

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