In the ancient worldview, tattoos were symbols of power, healing, magic, or reflection of the natural world.
According to Ancient Origins, depending on time and cultural factors, tattoos on the body were considered lowly, barbaric, or indicative of royal status. Ancient tattoos were often painted with dyes, soot, plant materials. Scientists found tattoos on many mummies that have survived to this day.
Iceman tzi
One of the most famous natural mummies with baseball jersey design tattoos is Ötzi the Iceman. This is a frozen mummy discovered in the Alps between Italy and Austria in 1991. The mummy dates to around 3,300 BC.
Scientists believe that the dark tattoos on the Ötzi ice man serve a therapeutic purpose, similar to an acupuncture treatment that originated in Asia 2,000 years later.
"The distribution of tattoos in the form of dots, crosses below the waist, right knee and ankle joints correspond to areas of degeneration. This suggests that ancient people used tattoos. to relieve joint pain," commented Joann Fletcher, an archaeologist at the University of York, UK.
Siberian Ice Maiden and Scythian Warrior
The "Siberian Ice Maiden" or "Ukok Princess" is the mummy of a young girl found in 1993 in Altai, near the common border of Russia, Mongolia, China and Kazakhstan. This girl was a shaman or spiritual leader of the nomadic Pazyryk people from 2,500 years ago.
To show her power, Princess Ukok tattooed on her splendid images of baseball jersey shirt cougars, sheep, deer with large horns, even mythical creatures like the winged leopard. Many people think that tattoos on mummies are very modern, close to today's tattoo patterns.
Princess Ukok was buried with the Scythian warriors and six horses. On the body of a warrior, there are many animal tattoos and winding lines, diverse colors, highly expressive.