Norway— Tattoo scenes & cities

In Norway, the sailor tattoo, or sjømannstatovering, is tied to seafarers and the merchant fleet. Its classic style came from the United States, but in Scandinavia it was shaped in the early 1900s by tattooists in Copenhagen and other European ports. An anchor could be earned after crossing the Atlantic; roses, swallows and full-rigged ships are among the designs.

A 2013 book, Norske sjømannstatoveringer, documented the tattoos of Norway's old sailors. Today, some tattooists also draw on Norse mythology and on the carved ornament of stave churches. One of them, who works these ornaments in black, explains that the aim is not to re-enact the past but to create a personal style.