Tattoos

Tattooing is an ancient practice with profound religious and cultural significance. While western tattooing centres on three main traditions – Polynesian, Japanese and Euro-American — it has been recorded more or less everywhere.
Beginning with the birth of the tattoo, John Miller explores this unique expression of personal, cultural and national identity, the tension between tattoo’s status as a fashion item and its roots in subculture, and the relevance of magic — a crucial part of tattooing’s origins — in contemporary society.