Searching for the origins of tattooing - Japan
Starting our digital journey behind the scenes of Japanese tattooing, we searched for historical evidence of antiquity to confirm today's traditional Japanese tattooing culture, what came up! Read for yourself :) Tattooing for spiritual and decorative purposes is believed to have been practiced on Japan’s archipelago in the Jomon or Paleolithic period (around 10,000 BC). It has been suggested that the characteristically with string-marked patterns observed on the faces and bodies of figures from this time period are tattoos, but this claim is not unanimously accepted.
The style of pottery produced by the Jōmon people is recognizable by its "string-marked" patterns, hence the name "Jōmon" (縄文, "straw rope pattern"). The first stages of the Jomon culture's most characteristic ceramic styles used decorations created by pressing cords into the surface of wet clay surface and are generally accepted as one of the oldest ftypes of pottery in East Asia and in the world as a whole. The Jomon period lasted more than 10,000 years, representing a "sedentary pre-agricultural lifestyle and a complex prehistoric human spiritual culture. Underlining the Japan Times said: "Archaeological evidence shows that the Jomon people were avidly attached to body changes.
Including tooth reshaping and body piercing as a form of expression," says Taku Oshima, a tattooist who specializes in Jomon period tattoos. He also points out that the research has shown that the traditional pattern slowly turned into a tattoo form. People in Nihon (the old name for Japan) believed that these patterns act as amulets.''. It has its own logic, because even in today's Japan, is full of superstition, the belief in the supernatural and the inexplicable has not disappeared.
The clay figures are known as dogū.
However, there is also evidence of a lack of tattooing traditions; according to the early 8th-century Kojiki (古事記, "Records of Ancient Things " or "Overview of Ancient Things"), in ancient mainland Japan, such a tradition of tattooing did not exist, and people who were tattooed were considered outsiders. Another record in the Nihon Shoki (日本書紀, sometimes translated as Chronicles of Japan) (the second oldest book in classical Japanese history) chronicles that the tradition of tattooing was limited to the people of Tsuchigumo. The word "bunshin", which appears in some of the ancient official records of Japanese history, is the ancient word for tattoos.
No actual mummified bodies showing signs of tattooing have been found on Japanese territory to date.
I assume that tattooing traditions really existed in pre- cultural Japan. Before the Japanese invasion of the Ryukyu Islands in 1609, tribes lived in the archipelago. Ainu, Hokkaido, Ryukyu people and other Kyushu people. Before any of them were the Jomon people who inhabited the area in 14,000 BC. They all have a common factor: tattoos. These are northern tribes whose tattooing parallels must be drawn with the Scythians, about whom we have already written before.
Hokkaido University professor Jeff Gaiman, an anthropologist specializing in Ainu culture, adds that Ainu people traditionally painted tattoos at Ainu wedding ceremonies. Tattooing, practiced by both the Ainu people and the Ryukyuan people, uses ink derived from the indigo plant.
Fashion and public opinion determine today's trends, we are all searching for our identity and want to be authentic - to find a connection with our origins and tattooing is this cultural bridge that spans centuries. Of course, this is my subjective opinion, but the visual signs are clearly visible with the inhabitants of the oceanic islands, which we have also written about. Good :) Moving on, to today's Japan, there is another tattooing culture that has created an amazing style, “Irezumi".
In Japan is a special style of tattooing that is offered in the form of body suit. These bodysuit tattoos have several names, but they can all be grouped under the term 'irezumi', which means 'insert ink'. Variations on this term have nuances that distinguish the purpose of the tattoo or whether the tattoo has a positive or negative connotation. These nuances are very important because they reflect the different roles that tattoos have played throughout their long history of Japanese culture. From the first recorded history of the tattoo in the 5th century to the present day, tattoos have been created for a variety of reasons, ranging from superstition, to branding criminals and finally with art.
All forms of irezumi are applied by hand using wooden handles and metal needles attached with silk thread. This method also requires a special ink known as Nara ink (also called zumi); It is a painful and time-consuming process practiced by a limited number of specialists known as Horishi. At them are usually working one or more apprentices, whose apprenticeship can last for many years.
Tattooing in Japan has deep roots in ancient Japanese folklore. The art form originated as a tool, to depict legendary heroes and mythical creatures using vibrant ink-painted designs. Over time, Japanese tattoo symbols became an integral part of Irezumi, transforming it into more than just a form of artistic expression - it became a symbol of personal identity, social status and spiritual connection. Moreover, it draws inspiration from religious icons, historical heroes, natural scenes and well-known Japanese fairy tales. Japanese tattoo design, characterized by large-scale motifs, reflects the essence of mythology and cultural heritage.
In the Edo period, irezumi kei (" punishment for tattoo") was a criminal punishment. The location of the tattoo was determined by the crime; thieves tattooed on the arm, murderers on the head. In Japanese society, tattoos became associated with criminals. At the beginning of the Meiji period, the Japanese government banned tattoos, which reinforced the prejudice against people with tattoos and tattoos in modern Japan. Although tattoos are still banned in many public recreation areas, the 2019 appeal changed the classification of tattoos as decoration rather than a medical procedure.
According to Margo DeMello's book Encyclopedia of Body Art, it wasn't until 1948 that tattooing was legalized again. However, until the time when tattooing was outlawed and used to label lawbreakers, tattooing was associated with criminality. And Japan’s most notorious criminals were known as the Yakuza.
The Japanese yakuza are considered the most prominent criminal syndicate in the world, as well as the richest. Although many of its members hold positions in media organizations and government posts. Hidden in public, under long sleeves, shirts and high collars, members of the yakuza wear some of the largest and most elaborate body suits in the world. Many are almost completely covered from the neck to the ankles. Yakuza still use traditional tattooing methods by visiting experienced irezumi masters. While tattooing was illegal, the yakuza adopted the practice as their own and it soon became, in the words of Tokyo-based master artist Horitoku Shorai, "an integral part of their way of life," and their apparent love of crime seems to be matched only by their love of tattoos.
The most detailed designs of irezumi are found in bodysuits, which are often associated with the yakuza. One man was so fascinated with irezumi that it led him to create a museum and exhibit irezumi “human skins” for his scientific research. His name was Dr. Fukushi Masaichi.
A life-changing moment came when Masaichi noticed that tattoo ink was destroying the skin lesions left by syphilis. From that moment on, the doctor fell down a rabbit hole, becoming a doctor tattoo.
Masaichi began studying tattoos in 1907 by meeting people with various tattoos. His greatest interest was bodysuits, and he paid people who were willing to donate their skin after death for his research. He even financed tattoos for people who couldn't afford them, if they were willing to donate their skin.
At the culmination of his research, Masaichi collected 2,000 tattooed human skins and documented them with more than 3,000 photographs. However, much of this collection was lost during air raids in 1945, while Masaichi also lost more of his skin on his journey to America.
Apparently, he carried them in a suitcase in Chicago and the suitcase was stolen. Despite the losses, at least 105 pieces remained intact, and were bequeathed to Masaichi Tokyo University. In the Museum of Medical Pathology an exhibition was held. The collection is not available for public viewing.
Collecting human bodies could be considered a crazy practice, Dr. Masichi was highly respected in the irezumi community and was invited to various tattoo competitions. His subjects were all willing participants, allowing the doctor and his son Fukushi Katsunari to preserve their art after death. They say that the greatest art lives forever, which means that Masichi had successfully achieved his goals....... Nice this also fits with my understanding of skin art :):):)
This unusual practice has created an underground market in Japan, where with spectacular sums of money at auctions can be bought people’s skin stretched like paintings. One source mentioned, "There are some families in Japan who will invest in getting you a tattoo." He said that "they pay for the tattoo and another £60,000 on one condition." This condition, he has heard, is that "in case of death they are allowed to take what belongs to them."
P.S.
Finally, irezumi is Japan's artistic nature, proof of cultural identity. In traditional Japanese tattoos embedded detailed designs, careful techniques and deep symbolism causes admiration and intrigue. These tattoos serve as a living reminder of the stories, beliefs and values that have, shaped Japan's rich cultural landscape, demonstrating the enduring power of art to transcend time. Understanding the rules of Japanese tattooing adds to the cultural significance of Irezumi. The first rule emphasizes the importance of a large tattoo that covering a wide area or an entire part of the body. The second rule emphasizes representative themes and symbols incorporating traditional Japanese tattoos. Most importantly, the Third Rule emphasizes that the design and application of a tattoo must primarily conform to these traditional guidelines.
Read before tattooing, and if we tattoo, then correctly - until the next session :)