Celtic Tattoos
Tattoos
Celtic tattoos are representations of the early Celtic culture, religion, and language of Europe. Many people use these tattoo designs to represent their Celtic origin – Scots, Welch or Irish. Tattoos were instinct part of Celtic culture and this fact makes Celtic tattoos more alluring. To show reverence, for worship, to appreciate, to invoke Gods, and even to scare enemies, different tattoos were used during the Celtic times in Europe.
Celtic designs are mainly made in a combination of very thick to slightly thick black lines. They are made as bands on one’s wrist or around one’s arm.
The knot work in Celtic tattoos is very popular and features in almost all the designs. The other prominent elements in the Celtic designs are starts, crosses, and claddagh. There are several such symbols in the traditional setting and they are used to represent several personality traits. Number ‘3’ features in almost all the Celtic designs, either explicitly or discretely.
Following are the Expressions of Various Celtic Tattoos,
- Knot – Seasonal Cycle, Continuous Life, Nature’s Complexity
- Butterfly - Beauty
- Dogs – Loyalty, Good Luck
- Birds (especially Eagles and Ravens) – Death, Battle
- Horse – Magic, Mystery, Power, Protection, Guidance
- Bear – Power
- Dragon – Magic, Power
- Cross – Religion
- Claddagh – Loyalty, Everlasting Love
- Tree of Life – World’s Eternal Nature, Life’s Start and End
- Oak Tree - Stability, Power
- Ogham (Celtic lettering) – Strength
- Bull – Stubbornness, Strong Will
- Lion – Nobility, Strength
- Griffin - Nobility, Strength
- Arrow and Sun – Piercing Power
- Arrow - Inner Strength
In addition to being made as bands on one’s wrist or around one’s arm, today, Celtic tattoos are being made on one’s lower back too. The Celtic tattoo work takes long time to finish and requires meticulous artwork to get it right. Any tattoo parlor will have a wide range of Celtic designs.
