[Fred Nerks]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1109463/posts?page=3

Altai Princess tattoo - posted by blam.

Body decoration/disfigurement has a very long history in numerous cultures and takes many forms...the study of which tells us something about the peoples that practised it. Perhaps the unadorned were once upon a time seen as primitive or barbarian?

[SunkenCiv]

Simple tattoos in surviving tribal cultures often are there to show tribal affinities; the more sophisticated the tattoo, the higher in status the person has risen. The tattoo isn't responsible for the higher status, it's the other way around. :')