Ancient civilizations were no strangers to the art of tattooing. From Japan to the British Isles, Polynesia to Peru, China to the Alps, tattoos held cultural value and significance that varied depending on the people. Quanzhou, China even became so famous for their tattoo artists that people would travel for over four months just to get a Quanzhou tattoo! Evidence of ancient tattoos on both men and women have been found in written text, mummies, and artwork.
Tattoos in Ancient Egypt, however, have a particularly unique tradition. “In ancient Egypt there is no artistic or physical evidence that men were tattooed apart from one Dynasty XII stele from Abydos. This depicts a figure, which is said to be male, with marks coming down over the chest. As the stele is extremely worn it is hard to distinguish whether the marks indeed represent tattoos.” Most scientists do agree that Ancient Egyptian tattoos were exclusively a feminine artform.
This leads to a bunch of different questions: what type of tattoos? How were they inked? Why were they inked? What evidence do we have of female tattooing in Ancient Egypt since there is a lack of evidence of male tattooing?
The answer to most of the above is really: we do not know. The stigma against tattoos in more recent history means much of the research into Ancient Tattooing is lacking. Most scientists thought that Ancient Egyptian tattoos were a sign of prostitution and promiscuity. Recent research has proven this (mostly) incorrect. So what do we know?
Evidence of tattooing has been found in mummified remains and in art (particularly in figurines). “Faience figurines dating from the Middle Kingdom…frequently display a series of dotted geometric tattoo patterns, running in horizontal bands across the lower abdomen.” Similar tattoos have been found on female mummies, most famously on Amunet, a Priestess of the goddess Hathor.
Amunet was heavily tattooed, with over thirty countable and separate tattoos across her body and largely on her abdomen. Some of the tattoos can be directly linked to hieroglyphic art in the temple of Hathor, showing a strong connection between Amunet and the goddess.
With examples like a Amunet and the faience figurines, Egyptologists have two main theories about tattooing in Ancient Egypt:
First, tattoos were largely of religious significance. In the case of Amunet and similar mummies, tattoos connected priestesses and female religious figures with their religious entity. “The permanent, public and religious nature of [Amunet’s] tattoos indicates that women’s religious roles in ancient Egypt were more complex than titles suggest. With divine eyes placed all over her body, this woman may have even embodied the goddess herself.”
Second, the reoccurring focus on female abdominal tattoos may point towards a connection to fertility. Specifically, “tattoos on the abdominal part of the female body would have become particularly notable when the woman became pregnant – the patterns would expand, forming an even more symbolically interesting pattern, like a web or netting design.”
Whatever the reason, the Ancient Egyptians clearly believed tattoos were of significance (with a major Priestess being largely tattooed). Considering the stigma that is just now lessening around inked women in our society, it’s refreshing to see tattoos as such a prominent feature in female history.
1. Tassie, Geoffrey. “Identifying the Practice of Tattooing in Ancient Egypt and Nubia.” (November 15, 2003): 88.
2. Angel, Gemma. “Tattooing in Ancient Egypt Part 2: The Mummy of Amunet.” Researchers in Museums Tattooing in Ancient Egypt Part 2 The Mummy of Amunet Comments, December 10, 2012. Tattooing in Ancient Egypt Part 2: The Mummy of Amunet.
3. Austin, Anne. “Tattooing in Ancient Egypt.” American Research Center in Egypt, February 11, 2023. https://arce.org/resource/tattooing-ancient-egypt/.
4. Tassie, 91.
5. Fouquet, Daniel. “Le Tatouage Medicale en Egypte dans l’Antiquite et a l’Epoque Actuelle’.” Archives d’Anthropologie Criminelle. Tome 13. (1898): 278.
6. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/544220