Maori Tattoos
You have no doubt had occasion to view Maori tattoos, many people including celebrities are sporting these tats on their body, however most have no idea about the origin or meaning.
Maori are native tribal people who settled in New Zealand around 1300 and their intricate tattoos were specific to the individual who wore it and contained elements of their family history.
In Maori tradition the facial tattoos or Ta Moko were a source of pride for men, they made them appear fierce and attractive to women. One reason the men likely took so much pride in their markings was due to the manner in which they were received.
Maori men did not travel to a local tattoo parlor with clean needles and speedy machines, their tats were placed upon the face and other areas of the body with chisels and a small mallet. The chisels made with bits of bone or shells were dipped in pigment. This process was painstaking and painful and it was a mark of honor that the man receiving the tattoo never cried out or flinched.
The Maori tattoos not only served as a history of family but as a rite of passage and social standing. Those who were not tattooed were considered to be of a lower social class. Receiving a Maori tattoo was often accompanied by several rituals and rites. Modern western varieties of these tattoos are much different from the traditional models. Today these tats are merely skin-deep and do not contain the ridges seen with the chisel and mallet method.
For women the process was much the same but the size and placement of Maori tattoos was different. Women would get smaller tats typically blue around the lips and perhaps an intricate chin tat. Foreheads, backs, buttocks and the neck were other common placements for tattoos, both for men and women.
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