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PHILIPPINE SEA – Sailors throughout history are drawn to tattoos. A tradition stretching the length of the service itself, tattooing has become almost synonymous with members of the U.S. Navy. Many Sailors brand themselves with lavish nautical designs like anchors, mermaids and compasses, but where does the heritage begin? How did the Navy’s subculture of body art emerge, and what secrets lie behind the designs.
The practice of tattoo artistry among American and European navies began around the 16th century and evolved over time. By the early 1900s, it was not uncommon for sailors to carry along boxes of needles and ink to tattoo each other while out at sea. The practice dissipated as times changed, but for some Sailors, these celebrations of tradition still hold true.
The evolution of naval tattoos brought the development of an intricate code and hidden meanings for these pieces of art in the 17th century, beginning as good luck charms.
For instance, a tattoo of a swallow was known to act as a distance marker over a crew member’s voyage at sea. This special bird is known to have incredible migration habits, traveling long distances to find its way back home. Each swallow tattooed on a Sailor’s body marks another 5,000 miles traveled.
In the early 18th century, it was common for sailors to have a flock of swallows filling in gaps and framing the designs of other meaningful tattoos. They were often embellishments to other pieces like masted ships, dragons and sea creatures. These larger, detailed tattoos would usually represent rare accomplishments.
Many of these tattoos indicated traveling to certain parts of the world. A fully rigged ship typically suggests a trip through Cape Horn at the southern tip of South Africa. Cape Horn is known to have devastatingly rough seas, and crossing it can be a remarkable feat for many sailors.
A golden dragon has been known to represent the crossing of the international date line. Traveled east to west, the date line is the point at which the clock is set forward a full 24 hours. A sailor will generally acquire this tattoo after traveling to 7th fleet, much like USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) during its current voyage. The date line is at the 180-degree meridian, with an approximate longitude somewhere between New Zealand and Hawaii. The date line is not a straight border – individual governments along the date line operate independently when choosing times.
Some smaller and more common tattoos include good luck charms such as a compass or a nautical star, which are said to help sailors find their way home. “HOLD FAST” might be written across a sailor’s knuckles to encourage crew members, particularly Boatswain’s Mates, to hold tightly onto lines when rigging. Roosters and pigs might be found tattooed on a sailor’s feet – in the unfortunate event of a shipwreck, livestock was often all that remained, floating on the surface above the sinking wreckage in their wooden crates.
Regardless of the number of tattoos a sailor chooses to adorn themselves with, the tradition is long-held and likely to continue, especially as the U.S. Navy relaxes regulations, allowing the Sailors of today to embrace their expressive history. Perhaps the success of our crew is owed in part to the artful good luck charms worn by so many, enabling Vinson to remain the seaworthy workhorse of the Pacific.
| Date Taken: | 12.08.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 12.18.2024 03:49 |
| Story ID: | 486966 |
| Location: | PHILIPPINE SEA |
| Web Views: | 6 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Naval Tattoos on Vinson, by SA Christa Watson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
