06/27/2025
-Fun Facts Friday-
We know that tattoos are an old tradition, and you might be asking -Yes, but how old? The earliest evidence we have dates to 5,300 years ago, during the Copper Age. Uncovered in 1991 by a group of hikers, buried beneath an Alpine glacier along the Austrian-Italian border, was a man with 61 tattoos across his body. He was aged about 45 and had lived around 3350 B.C. but his preservation was so intact they initially thought it was a modern person. The archaeologists nicknamed him Otzi the Iceman, in reference to where he was found. Otzi died from bleeding out after a wound from an arrow, which was found between his rib cage and shoulder blade. Because of this they theorize that Ozti was on the run for his life, which is backed up by a stab wound on his hand as well as pollen spores found in his stomach indicating that he changed altitude very rapidly. All of Otzi’s tattoos are simple in design, such as crosses, arrows, and sets of parallel lines. These tattoos were grouped on his body in areas where he suffered from joint and spinal degeneration, which leads researchers to suggest these were done for healing therapeutic purposes. In 2022 an experimental archaeology project was conducted, to better determine the processes used in prehistoric tattooing. Until this point it was assumed that incisions were made and then charcoal ash was rubbed into the wounds. Danny Riday, a New Zealand based tattoo artist, had the same motifs tattooed on himself. Using 8 different tools, including animal bone, obsidian, copper, and a boar tusk, and used 4 different techniques. A year later his tattoo’s were compared to Otzi’s, and gave credit to their theory that Otzi's tattoos were actually created by hand-poking with a single needle. And yes Otzi is -CURRENTLY- the oldest person found with tattoos, but his tattoos also indicate a social or therapeutic practice that must pre-date him. -Only time will tell!
