3300 B.C.– Otzi the Iceman dies in the Alps . His frozen , preserved stiff is discovered in A.D. 1991 ; it turn out the oldest examples of tattooing yet recover . Scholars are n’t certain whether his tattoos are cosmetic or grounds of stylostixis , but either path , Otzi makes his Saint Mark on tattooing account .

2000 B.C.– Upper - category Egyptian woman and priestesses are tattoo with a series of dots over the abdomen , thigh and breasts . scientist hypothesize that these tattoos are a chassis of protective cover during pregnancy , since the abdominal marking would flesh out to compensate the cleaning woman ’s belly as it grew .

A.D. 316 - - romish Emperor Constantine bans the practice of facial tattooing . His rationale is that human has been created in the figure of God , and so to defile the nerve is to disgrace the cleric .

720 - - Body nontextual matter go out of way in Japan when officials start using tattoos to punish felon . This lasts until the seventeenth century , when tattoo is put back by other punishments . ornamental tattoos quickly become stylish once more .

922 - - While visiting what is now Russia , Arab diplomat Ahmad Ibn Fadlan run into a group of heavily tattooed traders from northern Europe . Ibn Fadlan describes the tattoo as dark green lines and movie , extending from the tip of each man ’s toes to his neck .

History of Tattooing (Cont.)

1769 - - After an expedition to Tahiti and New Zealand , British explorer Capt . James Cook brings back tales of the native ' luxuriant torso fine art . He also popularizes the vocabulary we still use today : The Polynesian word tatau ( meaning " to strike " ) ease up rise to the Western terminal figure " tattoo . "

1846 - - Martin Hildebrandt opens the first U.S. tattoo parlour in New York City , servicing clientele that include soldiers from both position of the Civil War . His girl , Nora , lift to renown in the nineties when she tours with the Barnum and Bailey Circus as the Tattooed Lady .

1891 - - Samuel O’Reilly invents the electrical tattoo motorcar , which is exalt by Thomas Edison ’s autographic printing playpen . Modern tattoo machine are still largely based on O’Reilly ’s design .

1961 - - New York City bans tattooing , fearing a possible hepatitis B epidemic . The New York City Council move up the prohibition in 1997 . Three month later , the first annual New York Tattoo Convention is throw in the city .

2006 - - Scientists at Harvard University originate an erasable tattoo ink . Though it wo n’t wash off in the shower , the ink ’s social organization clear it easier for lasers to remove tattoos . effaceable tattoo ink gather popularity among those who stencil their mantrap ’s name on their bicep , as the plan is less too bad after a detachment .