RARE VINTAGE BOVINE BONE ROYAL NAVY CROSSING THE EQAUTOR HAND TATTOO NEEDLE
Item History & Price
| Reference Number: Avaluer:476041 |
Tattoos in Early EnglandThis needle would have been used on a new recruit crossing the Equator for the very first time on a Royal Navy ship. This needle came from my uncle who was chief restorer at the Tring museum for 30 years, Tring is the baby brother of the Natural History museum in London. Comes mounted in a wooden display case.
Dating back as far as the 16th century, sailors sported tattoos (called "tatus" in the Polynesian language)and brought these triba...l "souvenirs" from the Pacific islands back toEurope. Later on in the 17th century, written records (namely Captain James Cook’s diary) spoke about the tattoosthat were observed on indigenous people.Back in the day, sailors actually tattooed eachother and had to make do with what they had. They presumably used gunpowder andurine for ink. During the 19th century, tattooing flourishedin England like nowhere elsein Europe. This was due to the tradition oftattooing in the British Navy, which began with the first voyage of CaptainCook in 1769. During the decades that followed, many British seamen returnedhome bearing souvenirs of their travels in the form of exotic tattoos. Sailorslearned the art, and by the middle of the 18th century most British ports hadat least one tattoo artist in residence.Royal TattoosTattooing gained royal sanction in 1862when the Prince of Wales visited the Holy Land and had a Jerusalem Cross tattooed on his arm. In laterlife, as King Edward VII, he acquired a number of traditional tattoos. When hissons, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of York (later King George V), visited Japanin 1882, Edward VII instructed their tutor to take them to the tattoo masterHori Chiyo, who tattooed designs on their arms. On their way home, the twoDukes visited Jerusalemand were tattooed by the same artist who had tattooed their father 20 yearsbefore.Following the example of the Dukes, many wealthy Britons andnaval officers acquired tattoos from Japanese masters. this "fad". By 1890 the fad hadspread to the US, and tattoos were seen on members of the highest social circles.Thefirst British professional was D.W. Purdy who established a shop in North London around 1870. Height of case: 10 inches...26cm. Width: 8 inches...20cm. PLEASE NOTE DO "NOT" BUY MY ITEMS IF YOU HAVE 10 OR LESS FEEDBACK UNLESS YOU CONTACT ME FIRST! Due to the size, shape and being slightly fragile, some pieces will have to be specially wrapped, boxed and insured for loss only which shows in the shipping cost, I do not intend to take any chances with these pieces, better safe than sorry, it would be heart breaking to think it arrived broken and deserves looking after. I LIST NEW ITEMS EVERY WEEK, CHECK OUT MY WEIRD AND WONDERFUL ITEMS UP FOR AUCTION. PAYPAL ONLY READ THIS BEFORE YOU BID Sadly the Thai postal service now charges $35.00 a kilo by air, their old service is no longer available but they say this service is faster, land sea is a lot cheaper but takes longer. I cannot be held responsible for your countries import taxes or any other duties that have to be paid or control what Thai post charges for shipping. All items shipped with a tracking number. Shipping from Thailand can take between 14 to 28 days depending on the postal service and area so please be patient. Thai post will not ship to Brazil, Spain or The Russian Federation and many other eastern block countries so I can only use EMS which is about double the shipping rate quoted but twice as quick taking between 7-10 days. So please contact me first for a quote before you buy. I do my best to bring you unique and sometimes very rare items. I can sell you an item, wrap it as carefully as I can and then ship it to you. I cannot control what Thai post charges for shipping or tell you the exact time it takes to arrive to you, and can only give you a rough idea from past dealings, I have no control what so ever over any postal service's or U.S. customs. I use bubble wrap and other packing to cushion each item from possible mishandling during shipping. If for any reason, the item is broken, please email within 24 hours along with pictures of the broken item, original box inside and outside. I try to take good photo's with different angles, I also put all the information I know about the piece on the page including Height and Width, I do not charge for the box and wrapping which is also expensive here as it has to be imported.
Dating back as far as the 16th century, sailors sported tattoos (called "tatus" in the Polynesian language)and brought these triba...l "souvenirs" from the Pacific islands back toEurope. Later on in the 17th century, written records (namely Captain James Cook’s diary) spoke about the tattoosthat were observed on indigenous people.Back in the day, sailors actually tattooed eachother and had to make do with what they had. They presumably used gunpowder andurine for ink. During the 19th century, tattooing flourishedin England like nowhere elsein Europe. This was due to the tradition oftattooing in the British Navy, which began with the first voyage of CaptainCook in 1769. During the decades that followed, many British seamen returnedhome bearing souvenirs of their travels in the form of exotic tattoos. Sailorslearned the art, and by the middle of the 18th century most British ports hadat least one tattoo artist in residence.Royal TattoosTattooing gained royal sanction in 1862when the Prince of Wales visited the Holy Land and had a Jerusalem Cross tattooed on his arm. In laterlife, as King Edward VII, he acquired a number of traditional tattoos. When hissons, the Duke of Clarence and the Duke of York (later King George V), visited Japanin 1882, Edward VII instructed their tutor to take them to the tattoo masterHori Chiyo, who tattooed designs on their arms. On their way home, the twoDukes visited Jerusalemand were tattooed by the same artist who had tattooed their father 20 yearsbefore.Following the example of the Dukes, many wealthy Britons andnaval officers acquired tattoos from Japanese masters. this "fad". By 1890 the fad hadspread to the US, and tattoos were seen on members of the highest social circles.Thefirst British professional was D.W. Purdy who established a shop in North London around 1870. Height of case: 10 inches...26cm. Width: 8 inches...20cm. PLEASE NOTE DO "NOT" BUY MY ITEMS IF YOU HAVE 10 OR LESS FEEDBACK UNLESS YOU CONTACT ME FIRST! Due to the size, shape and being slightly fragile, some pieces will have to be specially wrapped, boxed and insured for loss only which shows in the shipping cost, I do not intend to take any chances with these pieces, better safe than sorry, it would be heart breaking to think it arrived broken and deserves looking after. I LIST NEW ITEMS EVERY WEEK, CHECK OUT MY WEIRD AND WONDERFUL ITEMS UP FOR AUCTION. PAYPAL ONLY READ THIS BEFORE YOU BID Sadly the Thai postal service now charges $35.00 a kilo by air, their old service is no longer available but they say this service is faster, land sea is a lot cheaper but takes longer. I cannot be held responsible for your countries import taxes or any other duties that have to be paid or control what Thai post charges for shipping. All items shipped with a tracking number. Shipping from Thailand can take between 14 to 28 days depending on the postal service and area so please be patient. Thai post will not ship to Brazil, Spain or The Russian Federation and many other eastern block countries so I can only use EMS which is about double the shipping rate quoted but twice as quick taking between 7-10 days. So please contact me first for a quote before you buy. I do my best to bring you unique and sometimes very rare items. I can sell you an item, wrap it as carefully as I can and then ship it to you. I cannot control what Thai post charges for shipping or tell you the exact time it takes to arrive to you, and can only give you a rough idea from past dealings, I have no control what so ever over any postal service's or U.S. customs. I use bubble wrap and other packing to cushion each item from possible mishandling during shipping. If for any reason, the item is broken, please email within 24 hours along with pictures of the broken item, original box inside and outside. I try to take good photo's with different angles, I also put all the information I know about the piece on the page including Height and Width, I do not charge for the box and wrapping which is also expensive here as it has to be imported.
