Historic tattoo photographs from the invention of the camera through the 1970s.

Enter a visual smorgasbord of tattoo imagery. Hundreds of photographs, thousands of tattoos. This incredible assembly of historic tattoo images dates back to the invention of the camera and follows the art form's progression through the 1970s. Here is a celebration of tattoo and people who enjoy the art form.

The images document tattoo designs varying from testaments of love and military badges, religious imagery, and tribal markings. Shown are circus performers who exhibit neck-to-toe art; Navy boys who proudly sport new sets of sails, and men and women who show off lifetime collections. Here, too, are the daring young women who defied convention by tattooing and piercing their bodies during the early 1960s and '70s.[AuthorName]By Spider Webb[/AuthorName][AuthorBio]Tattoo artist Spider Webb, M.F.A., has lectured internationally and his paintings and photographs have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world. He has authored many books on tattoo art, operates a tattoo parlor at the Coney Island Museum, New York, and manufactures one-of-a-kind tattoo machines.[/AuthorBio][NumIllustration]512 b/w photos[/NumIllustration][CoAuthor][/CoAuthor][SubTitle][/SubTitle][ColorPattern]512 b/w photos[/ColorPattern]