Mexican Aztec tattoos are striking, provocative, distinctive, and very trendy at the moment, with brilliant designs and patterns in constant production by artists.
This art form is geometric, featuring rich, bold patterns that speak to the history of the famed Aztec people.
Tattooing was done in ritual ceremonies honoring particular gods, and children were also tattooed in large numbers.
The Aztec Empire flourished between 1325 and 1521, developing a highly advanced artistic and philosophical culture that has commanded huge public interest over the last few decades.
Religion played a central role in this civilization, and daily life was often a quest to serve and honor the gods and deities that protected the people.
Tattooing was one of the ways this connection to higher entities was demonstrated.
A person's status in the community determined the design of the tattoos including the inscriptions on them.
Great hunters, artists, priests, and warriors, all had specialised tattoos signifying their rank and successes.
Despite the centralized administration of the Aztec empire, ethnic independence was fiercely guarded by its citizens, and tattoos were a common way to differentiate members of various tribes.
Several themes feature prominently in Mexican Aztec tattoos, including: 1) The Sun.
As the guardian of the heavens, the Sun was the epicentre of Aztec religion, personified by the powerful sun god, Huitzilopochtili.
2) Quetzalcoatl.
Whose name means The Feathered Serpent.
He was the most powerful god known to the Aztecs.
Quetzalcoatl was the god of the wind, the god of fertility, creativity, and knowledge.
3)Other Aztec gods who complete the Aztec pantheon, such as Tlaloc and Tezcatlipoca, a dreaded god known also as Necoc Yaotl ("Enemy of Both Sides").
Today, many modern Mexicans keep these traditions alive by getting an Aztec or Inca tattoo, in honor of their ancestors.
People from across the world have joined them, to partake of the striking art of the tattoos, and to celebrate an intriguing, powerful civilization.