Rising in the early 1900’s, American traditional tattoos have been a staple in the industry. It’s a style of tattoo defined by classic designs, bold lines, and small but bright color palettes. At it’s genesis, tattoos were commonly limited to circus performers, sailors, or other military personnel. More often than not, the tattoo designs held a deeper meaning. This is especially true for sailors. Their tattoos frequently served as reminders of home and loved ones, to mark milestones in the service, and so much more.

What do traditional tattoos symbolize?

Traditional Anchors

Like their function on a ship, anchors are a common tattoo motif that symbolizes stability. Anchors are a reminder to stay grounded and not drift away from goals or other important factors. Additionally, some people get anchor tattoos to represent their feelings of holding something down – like family or relationships.

Ships

Another common traditional tattoo design is a ship. To a sailor, a ship was a second home and they treated it exactly as such.  A ship symbolizes the call to adventure, whether it be a physical wanderlust or a metaphysical journey. Ships are also associated with strength and perseverance, as they endure and push through uncertain seas and storms.

Daggers

Dagger tattoos often symbolize a ’till the death’ sort of mantra. Daggers were a warriors last line of defense in battle. If stripped of a sword or primary weapons, warriors had to rely on small bladed daggers and their own cunning. Alternatively, daggers can stand for anguish, loss or betrayal. This connotation is more prominent in tattoos where a dagger is piercing something, like a heart for example.

Traditional Swallows

Tattoos of swallows is another common design popularized by sailors. Unlike other birds, swallows always return to their nest site no matter how far they have traveled or the arduous conditions that they’ve endured. In that regards, sailors and swallows are very much alike. In the early days of traditional tattoos, swallows were also used to signify a sailor’s seafaring experience. A single swallow marked 5,000 nautical miles that a sailor had trekked, and two swallows marked 10,000 nautical miles. Such a feat was admirable back then, without the aid or safety of modern technology.

Roses

In the beginning, sailors would often get rose tattoos to acknowledge love that they had left behind while away at sea. They could symbolize a connection to wives, girlfriends, mothers or daughters. In modern day, however, rose tattoos don’t tend to share this meaning and often done for aesthetic purposes. It wasn’t uncommon for roses to incorporated with other traditional tattoos such as daggers, anchors, swallows and many others.

Eagles

The United States adopted eagles as our national bird in the late 1700’s. Therefore, traditional eagles tattoos often symbolized the core values of America – freedom, majesty, and prosperity. American bald eagles are fierce and relentless hunters. With their powerful beaks and sharp talons, it’s common for eagles to hunt prey much larger than themselves. Therefore, eagle tattoos can also stand for power, persistence and warrior-like attributes. It is also common to see eagles mixed with military related tattoo designs to show pride.

Snakes

In the animal world, snakes are among the fiercest predators. Using sharp fangs or venom and their cunning nature, snakes often prey on animals much larger than themselves. Coupled with their leg-less appearance, it’s easy to see why some people are afraid of them. Traditional snake tattoos often embodied their tenacious reputation as skilled, sometimes dangerous hunters. Snakes can also symbolize rebirth, as they shed and renew their skin. Alternatively, snakes are sometimes tattooed wrestling eagles or with daggers through their body. In that regard, snake tattoos can symbolize power over the ‘snaky’ aspects of life – either internal conflict or shady sorts of people.

Wolves

Wolves live and hunt in packs alongside their kin. They are strong, smart and ruthless predators. For hundreds of years, wolves have been the subject of myths from many cultures. They’re also known to be skillful survivalists, sometimes enduring long and arduous hardships. A wolf will travel incredible lengths in search of food for their family and selves. Traditional wolf tattoos typically stood for family values, power, ferocity, and an insatiable hunger for life. However, wolves can sometimes have negative connotations. When natural prey is scarce, wolves may become desperate and prey on live stock – and in incredible famine, sometimes humans in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Sources:

Cloak & Dagger

Sailor Jerry