The Barbed Wire tattoo can standalone or be integrated into almost any other tattoo design. Barbed wire tattoos that are standalone can be a single segment or a band that wraps all the way around an arm or ankle. The design can be integrated into traditionally feminine tattoo motifs to make them tougher, religious motifs to make them rawer, superhero motifs to make them more hardcore, and traditionally masculine tattoo designs to make them harder. People who want to convey their originality and edge might like this type of tattoo design. Barbed Wire Tattoos originated with Russian convicts, who would get Barbed Wire tattooed on different parts of the body and at different lengths, depending on the crimes they committed, their guilt or innocence, and how long they had spent in prison. The tattoo design also has been used to symbolize having fought in a war, from World War II up through Iraq and Afghanistan. When paired with Christian symbols, the tattoo design can be used to represent that Jesus died on the cross to forgive the sins of humanity. However this subject is often chosen because Barbed Wire simply looks cool.
