Tattoos can easily be, and often are, sinful. Many are profane and indecent. But tattoos have been around longer than that. The first discovery of tattoos known to man came from a well preserved mummy nicknamed Otzi. Tattoos during love’s first throes might not be wise. It’s one thing to remove your wedding ring, it’s another to get rid of a tattoo - it means painful laser treatment or an often dodgy reconstruction over the tattoo or both.

Tattoos never grow old. You may see in this special gallery a few tattoos from other postings I have made. Tattoos still retained their hints of shame: carnival acts included fully tattooed men and women who told tales of abduction with forcible submission to the riveting needles. But tattoos can also be used as a bad way to mark who a person is. In the 1800s the British government used tattoos to mark criminals.

Tattoos can be inexpensive and, more importantly, permanent; so choosing an image is a very big decision. Here to help is 500 Tattoo Designs, a vast reference library of popular tattoos. Tattoos have become more popular in recent years, and the people who get them are as diverse as the styles and designs they choose. And some people who would never think of tattooing pictures or symbols onto their bodies use permanent makeup — a type of tattoo — to emphasize their eyes and lips.

Tattoos, unlike fads, fancies or old boyfriends, don’t disappear over time. The Food and Drug Administration estimates that 45 million Americans have at least one tattoo — and that 8 million of them regret it. But tattoos apparently won’t do much for your intelligence or your physique, as few Americans reported that tattoos make them feel more intelligent (5%), more healthy (4%), or more athletic (3%).