Japanese

Mostly with motifs such as dragons, tigers, fish or cherry blossoms, the often colorfully engraved Japanese tattoos, so-called Irezumi (Engraving ink), have a long, traditional history behind them. The Tebori technique was practiced during the 18th and 19th centuries and is still used today by a few masters of this art as a traditional method. It involves using a bamboo stick and needle to tap the ink from a charcoal mixture into the skin. At the time, tattoos in Japan were considered a symbol of spirituality and status that distinguished masters from slaves. Over time, the tattoo became less and less important in Japanese culture and was associated with crime and the mafia, the Yakuza, and in order to improve the image of the country, any kind of tattoos were even strictly forbidden for a while.Despite all this, Japanese tattoos are popular all over the world and adorn numerous arms, backs or other parts of the body today. If you are thinking about getting such a tattoo, you will probably consider one of the following motifs.