Scientists discovered tattoo patterns on the 5,200-year-old mummy known as Iceman, and the art of tattooing is thought to be even older. Like other types of ink and paint, tattoo ink starts out as a powder or solid pigment and is mixed with a liquid called a carrier. Materials used for the pigment and carrier in early tattoo ink depended on what was available to the tattooist, and thus varied across cultures and eras.
Prehistoric Tattoos
The Tattoo Collection website states that people in ancient cultures cut themselves in patterns and shapes and then applied soot to the wounds, making the scars dark and permanent. They probably created the soot by blackening sticks of different types of wood and rubbing the sticks on their bodies, with their blood acting as the pigment carrier. This theory of early tattooing is based on the discovery of artifacts from the Paleolithic era believed to be tattooing instruments.
Egyptian Tattoos
According to Smithsonian Magazine's website, accounts from Egypt in the mid-1800s describe tattoo ink as a mixture of soot and breast milk. The tattooist perforated the skin with a bundle of needles, usually in geometric patterns and rubbed the ink into the wounds. Similar instruments were found at Egyptian archaeological sites dating to 3000 BC, leading scientists to believe that ink composition remained the same for thousands of years.
Roman Tattoos
The Vanishing Tattoo historic website describes military tattooing practices in 4th century Rome. Legionaries had to earn the right to bear the mark, believed to have been an eagle. The Roman physician Aetius recorded a recipe for tattoo ink. The pigment was made of the bark of the Egyptian pine, corroded bronze, iron sulphate and insect egg deposits called gall. The pigment was mixed with a carrier of leek juice and water.
Polynesian and Maori Tattoos
The Maori culture of New Zealand is known for its elaborate facial tattoos, called moko. Their tattoo pigments were soot-based. Smithsonian Magazine states, "Polynesian culture is thought to have influenced Maori tattoos," as Polynesian settlers in New Zealand brought many of their traditions to the North Island. European presence led to the widespread use of gunpowder as a tattoo pigment in the 19th century, replacing burned wood.
Japanese Tattoos
The tradition of Japanese tattooing may date back to 5000 BC or later, according to Vanishing Tattoo. These tattoos were often made from a pigment of pressed charcoal, producing black ink. In later years, tattooists were able to use color in their body art by making pigments from metals like cobalt and iron oxide.
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