Tattoo • ology

Vine tattoos are excellent for both the artist as well as the wearer. The spiraling plant with soft leaves and spreading tendrils make very good design elements and the tattoo artist can be at his creative best when doing a vine tattoo.

The design is flexible, can be adapted to different sizes and many other elements life flowers, etc can be added to compliment the vine tattoo. Vine tattoos can depict Ivy, grapes or any other crawlers of the garden.

Over and above the flexibility and the gentle beauty of the vine tattoo, these also carry rich historical background which adds more meaning and significance to the tattoo design.

Some of the historical background of vine tattoos which add more value to its meaning:

• One of the earliest evidence of the vine being revered in history is when we see Bachchus, the Roman god of wine, good living and revelry wearing a crown made of evergreen Ivy. This was the symbol of immortality during the Roman era.
• In ancient Egypt, Osiris was seen carrying a rod with the Ivy had entwined round it.
• From Bacchus, grew a cult of revelers who celebrated life wearing similar crown of Ivy. The vine was believed to counteract the effect of grapes.
• The Ivy was also a symbol of intellectual superiority and featured in nearly every crown of honor.
• Bachcus the Roman God is believed to have dodged his enemies by crossing a bridge of vines across the river Euphrates.
• There is also another story of Bachchus when he was raided at sea by pirates. He was saved because of the clinging and poisonous Ivy that crippled his enemies. Thus the Ivy became the symbol of a savior.
• The ivy-crowned head of Bachchus can be seen in old Roman coins.
• According to the Celtic belief, the Ivy represented resolve, death and spiritual enlightenment. When it spirals round a tree it symbolizes re-birth and celebration.
• Ivy has been used in several ancient Pagan rituals.
• The Irish poet wore the Ivy crown and the evergreen Ivy is a symbol of youth and immortality.
• According to Christian belief, the Ivy represented Resurrection. Its spiraling growth resembled ascension of the soul to meet the Divine, though the Christians had once rejected the Ivy as a Pagan symbol.
• The Holly and the Ivy are the inevitable Christmas plants through out the world.
• Lovers in the western world look upon Ivy as a symbol of truthfulness and fidelity.
• Brides and women carry Ivy in their wedding bouquet and wear them for fertility and good fortune respectively. This could be due to the fact that the Ivy vine can grow and survive under the toughest weather conditions as well as darkness.
• In Victorian era, the Ivy was a symbol of wedded love and friendship in marriage.

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