Filters
Close
RSS

Blog

Lily Flower Tattoos and Tattoo Designs

Lilies are flowering plants normally grown from bulbs and sprouting showy flowering garden plants. Some species of lilies are edible. Many plants have the word lily in its name, but it has been classified in the ''Lilium'' genus to be a true lily. The lily's phallic appearance and erotic fragrance caused societies like the Greeks and Egyptians to associate it with fertility. It was a popular decorative motif in those ancient cultures. Feminine sexuality was artfully suggested when the lily was placed in a vase or jar, as it often was. 

Christians, on the other hand, see the lily as based on the Sermon on the Mount and its 'lilies of the field' passage. Consider how beautiful they grow, though 'they toil not'. It says that God provides and the lily emerges as a symbol of faith and surrender to God's grace. The lily is also a symbol of Easter and of Christ himself, of resurrection and immortality. The lily is often seen near a coffin, symbolizing death as well as purity. Because of its association with Christ, lilies are symbolic that the newly departed soul, if they have led a virtuous life of faith, will find resurrection in the hereafter. Lilies are often featured in memorial tattoo designs.

Lily tattoos symbolize purity, chastity and innocence. White lilies are associated with the Virgin Mary.

GSF-01445GSF-01456GSF-01487

Show me more Lily Tattoo Designs

Kokopelli Tattoos and Tattoo Designs

Kokopelli is a fertility deity, usually depicted as a humpbacked flute player with a huge phallus and feathers or antenna-like protrusions on his head. Kokopelli also presides over both childbirth and agriculture. He is the trickster god, a healer, a storyteller and represents the spirit of music. The first known images of him appear on Hohokam pottery dating between 750AD and 850AD. Although Kokopelli is associated with Native American cultures in the Southwestern United States, he has recently come to be a logo of the Southwestern United States as a whole.

Kokopelli also presides over the reproduction of game animals, and for this reason, he is often depicted with animal companions such as rams and deer. Other common creatures associated with him include sunbathing animals such as snakes, or water-loving animals like lizards and insects. Because of this, some scholars believe that Kokopelli's flute is actually a blowgun (or started out as one). Alternatively, the "flute" may actually be a pipe for smoking tobacco in a sacred ceremony or some other device entirely. In his domain over agriculture, Kokopelli's flute playing chases away the winter and brings about spring. Many tribes, such as the Zuni, also associate Kokopelli with the rains. 

Kokopelli carries unborn children on his back and distributes them to women (for this reason, young girls often fear him). He often takes part in rituals relating to marriage, and Kokopelli himself is sometimes depicted with a consort, a woman called ''Kokopelmana'' by the Hohokam and Hopi. Another story says that he traveled from village to village bringing the changing of winter to spring, melting the snow and bringing about rain for a successful harvest. It is also said that the hunch on his back depicted the sacks of seed sand songs he carried. Legend also has it that the flute playing also symbolized the transition of winter to spring. 

Kokopelli's flute is said to be heard in the spring's breeze, while bringing warmth. It is also said that he was the source of human conception. Legend has it that everyone in the village would sing and dance throughout the night when they heard Kokopelli play his flute. The next morning, every maiden in the village would be with child. For this reason, he is also known as the Love God.

Kokopelli tattoos often denote a free spirit. You will find Kokopelli tattoos on musicians, artists and other creative people.

PLF-01746PLF-01832PLF-01719

Show me more Kokopelli Tattoo Designs

Leopard Tattoos and Tattoo Designs

The leopard is smallest of the four big cats in the feline family. It is characterized by its spots, relatively short legs and large skull. They are often mistaken for other spotted cats, but the leopard's "spots" are actually rosettes, more intricate than a cheetah's but without an inner spot that jaguars have. Although the leopard was originally thought to be a hybrid of a lion and a panther, it was later found to be untrue.The leopard will eat virtually any animal it can hunt down and catch. Although it once roamed a larger region that included Korea and South Africa, the leopard now mostly inhabits sub-Sahara Africa.

The strength and power of the African leopard represents the masculine qualities of the hunter. It also symbolizes social order and stability. Wearing the leopard skin was traditionally reserved for royalty and symbolized power and wealth. In some regions, the leopard was a powerful totem animal, most infamously with a cult that believed that by eating the flesh and blood of their victims they could be transformed into leopards. These 'leopard men' terrorized villages with ritual killings using a metal-pronged weapon that simulated the leopard's slashing, gashing and mauling. 

Leopard tattoo designs make a strong masculine statement, one that symbolizes strength, speed, courage and endurance.

S1F-00053JPF-00502JPF-00113

Show me more Leopard Tattoo Designs

Libra Tattoos and Tattoo Designs

Libra is the seventh astrological sign in the Zodiac, originating from the constellation of Libra. It is considered to be a masculine, extrovert, air sign, ruled by the planet Venus. Individuals born between September 23rd and October 22nd are considered to be born under the sign of Libra. Libras are thought to be diplomatic, cooperative, balanced, flirty, romantic and sociable. 

In Greek mythology, Libra is associated with the goddess of Justice, Themis. It is also connected to Atalanta (meaning balanced) and Astraea (daughter of Justice). She fled the wickedness of the earth to the sky with the Scales of Balance. She became the constellation Virgo and the Scales became the nearby constellation Libra.

PHF-00589APF-00011AXF-00663

Libra is represented by The Scales of Balance and is the only symbol of the zodiac that is not represented by an animal or a person. The Scales are common theme in Libra tattoos. Libra is also associated with thought, perspective and communication. Although scales and balance tattoos are usually worn by Libras, the scale is also the symbol for the legal system. Lawyers, judges and other people interested injustice are sometimes marked by a Libra tattoo.

SOF-00271ANF-00050BPF-00027

 

Show me more Libra Tattoo Designs