A tattoo is a design made under the skin with ink or other pigment. Usually decorative or symbolic. It’s a type of body modification.

• TATTOO

Eventhough tattoo is getting more and more popular each day it seems impossible for the law makers to set frames to the professionals. In france tattooists are considered as artists.

• DEFINITION

The word tattoo comes from the tahitian “ta-tu” wich derives from the expression “ta-atouas” composed of “ta” design and “atouas” spirit. The practice of tattoo had it’s origion in the prehistorical times wich was an permanent adornment. During the tattooing pigments are puted in the skin at a depth of 1 to 2 millimeters. The artists can draw it free hand ot following a stencil. The modern tattooing machine (dermograph) makes vibrate a group of needles thousands of times per minute wich make a series of perforation in the skin. The needles full of ink make the pigment penetrate the skin. The needles go into the epiderma to reach the derma.

• HISTORY

It’s hard to say when tattoo is born excatly. In egypt a mummy of the pristress of hator was found, it was of the XIth dynasty (2200 bc) and was bearing tattoos. We can also see in the leningrad’s museum, the body of shiite warior frozzen inton ice for 2000 years, his harm was cover with sophisticated tattoos. Ttattoo was considered as a proctection against bad luck and diseasies. It was also used to identify the status and social rank or the memebership to a group. In europe we found traces of tattoos with the gaulois and “british” ethnies (cesar notes in “de bello gallica” that all the briton color their skin with a bleu coloring matter). The romans used tattoos to mark mercenaries, slaves and criminals. After the battle of hasting the decapitated and mutilated body of king Arnold was identify thanks to the word “edith” that he had tattooed on his chest. The firsts eastern christians like the coptes got tattooed symboles of their religion and this tradition lasted untill the XXth century amongst the pilrims to jerusalem. Then the tattooing technic evolved and in 1891 samuel o’riley invented the electric tattoing machine. Since 1970 tattoo is very popular and has psread into every social classes. What was only for marginals seduced artists, doctors, businessmen men and women.

• PREVENTION

To reduce the risks the tattooists are :

– cleaning the surface of the skin of the customer using antiseptic product.
– using steril and disposable needles.
– using gloves.
– treating the material used several time in a room made only for this use.
– sterilizing this material in an autoclave.
– having a clean and enligten environement.
– eliminate their infectious trashes.
– no animal at all in the tattoo shop.

• ADVISE

The tattoo is a trauma for the skin so you have to take care of it the weeks after it’s done.

– wash your hands before touching the tattooed place.
– protect your tattoo from the sun light.
– keep your tattoo in open air.
– wash your tattoo using a neutral soap.
– use a cicatrizing cream every four hours during the cicatrization period.
– avoid bathing (bathtube, swimmingpool, beach, hammam).
– avoid scratching the tattoo.
– don’t let anyone touch it.