The meaning of the Pirate tattoo is very symbolic. Let's not forget the history of these sea wolves. Since ancient times, these were robbers and lovers of easy and quick money. Of course, in modern times, the word “pirate” often brings to mind pictures from the movies “Pirates of the Caribbean,” where the charming Johnny Depp cuts through the sea. But in reality, pirates are not so charming. Agree, for months at sea, periodically entertaining himself with robberies and murders, drinking rum... A dubious image of a charmer.

Therefore, the meaning of a pirate tattoo is mostly negative. Symbolizes cruelty and violence, as well as a penchant for easy pleasures when it does not require much effort. By the way, even in the prison world, pirate tattoos are used. As a rule, they are used by those convicted of robbery, hooliganism and fraud. It is believed that a person with a pirate tattoo can do anything to achieve his goal. For everything in a bad way - to kill, rob, take away, and so on.

There are a great many examples of tattoos with pirates - they can be a full-length image of a person in appropriate attire, or just top part, instead of a face there may well be a skull, or some kind of monster (again, apparently, echoes of the heroes of the film). There are also variations of pirate tattoos with paraphernalia - with a parrot on the shoulder, or with the helm of a ship, under sail, with a chest, with a saber and, of course, a flag. The Jolly Roger pirate tattoo is more of a traditional image. The flag is usually black. This is a sign of the pirates' motto, "surrender without a fight." The image of the pirate ship itself is also popular.

Whatever you say, this is still predominantly men's tattoo. But, in order to avoid accusations of discrimination, let’s say that there are more humorous variations of tattoos with pirates, for example, which look very good on girls.

On your arm or on your back?

Since basically the image has many small details, so that all this can be seen and so that the picture looks harmonious, the corresponding places on the body are chosen. Images look good on the back, hips, and arms. That is, places where you can “turn around.” In our article you can see a photo of a pirate tattoo on the arm and other parts of the body.

I would like to highlight as a separate topic the image with the heroes of the above-mentioned film - “Pirates of the Caribbean”. After its release, many, as if on cue, rushed to fill themselves with images of Jack Sparrow, excuse me, Captain Jack Sparrow, Davy Jones and other colorful characters. The meaning of such tattoos is more humorous than actually carrying any semantic meaning.

Style selection

Here, due to the fact that there are a lot of details, or the image is plot-based, you should select styles that are close to realism. But the choice of a color or monochrome option is up to you. If you want to include yourself in this caste of sea robbers, but don’t want to get your entire back covered, you can choose a small tattoo, for example, with a flag.

One of the most popular symbols in the field of body painting turned out to be a skull - a symbol of pirates and a favorite creative people. A couple of centuries ago, the meaning of the Jolly Roger tattoo was clear to everyone - a pirate is standing in front of you and it’s better to get away quickly. However, today pirates can only be seen in movies, and the symbol itself is depicted with such skill and framing that even girls decorate their bodies with it.

The classic type of Jolly Roger tattoo is a skull with crossbones underneath, like on a pirate flag. IN modern world This image can be found on poison containers, electrical panels and in museums visual arts. We know of more than 50 paintings included in the list of world cultural heritage, which depict the ancestor of the Jolly Roger. So, if none of the sketches proposed by the master suits you, you can take as a basis the plot of paintings written in the “vanitas” genre, where these skulls and other inanimate natures are a dime a dozen.

What does the Jolly Roger tattoo mean?

In general, it is not difficult to guess the meaning of a tattoo, although it is interpreted differently. For some it is danger, death, the other world, black magic. For others it is wisdom, knowledge, memory of ancestors, protection, a talisman and even power. Theatergoers can depict Poor Yorick on their bodies and loudly proclaim his name every time someone notices an unusual tattoo. And someone just likes the picture and, purely for aesthetic reasons, he will immortalize it somewhere on his body, without worrying about what the Jolly Roger tattoo means.

In any case, you need to be a daredevil and free from the opinions of others. Here you have to explain to everyone why you have a rose on your wrist, and about the appearance of the skull you will have to compose and rehearse a whole ready-made version. But it will immediately be clear that don’t put your finger in this dude’s mouth.

On what part of the body will we fill the skull?

And so, we smoothly moved on to the parts of the body on which the skull looks best. Of course, this is a large muscular arm, back or chest due to the slightly elongated and volume-requiring shape of the picture. But slender skinny women also find where to place a new friend - images small size look good on any part of the body. You remember that this is forever? Therefore, friend and nothing else.

Girls need to take seriously the choice of place for a tattoo. The picture should not spoil the overall impression of your beauty. Therefore, the symbol should be simple and small. If you choose a Jolly Roger tattoo in a complex style with many details, then the larger the design, the more beautiful it will look.

You should also know that not all parts of the body should be tattooed, and at the same time, these are different places for boys and girls. Either it won’t hold on or the area of ​​the body is so tender that not everyone can endure this pain. So, if the master gives recommendations, then you need to listen to them. Moreover, not only in choosing a part of the body to apply the design, but also in caring for it, because the first 2 weeks are decisive for appearance tattoo. Follow the instructions you are given to the letter.

Meaning for men

The meaning of the Jolly Roger tattoo tells us that its wearer loves adventure, is brave and it is better not to joke with him. In general, the one who decided to get such a tattoo is already an adventurer at heart or wants to acquire this quality. Often, we paint on our bodies those images whose energy we would like to bring into our lives. Therefore, if you see the owner of such a tattoo, it means that he is either a cheerful person, or a daring rebel, or a connoisseur of gothic and occultism, or simply liked the picture.

Meaning for women

As one of the owners of a skull tattoo admitted, for her he is like a protector and advisor. Among the female half (and sometimes the male half) this symbol is attributed to the meaning of death or birth, wisdom, black magic, protection from dark forces or, conversely, the image of a skull indicates that its owner is under their protection. Depending on what details are present near the skull, it also begins to be interpreted differently. Let's say a crown on a skull is a sign of power, a raven next to a skull means wisdom or death. Even the location of that same raven is important here. If he is depicted standing astride Roger, then it is clear that Yorick died long ago, and you captured this for centuries. The plot is straight from the painting “The Apotheosis of War” by Vasily Vereshchagin.

What style does the Jolly Roger look best in?

We, of course, express a subjective opinion here, and you can express your preferences in the comments to this review. We have selected several successful photos of the Jolly Roger tattoo, and you can see for yourself that in the Realistic style it will be really cool! Also suitable for (men) and (girls). You can also try Chicano, Baroque, engraving, stenciling and trash polka realism.

Now let's talk about time and pain. The first question the artist is asked before getting a tattoo is whether it will hurt. Of course, it will hurt, but not as much as before. It is no secret that tattoos are now done only under anesthesia, and not like a hundred years ago, under alcohol. By the way, we do not recommend drinking alcohol for anesthesia. The blood thins and begins to flow during the drawing process. The quality and the master himself suffer from this.

The time it takes to complete a large picture can take several stages (or rather, days) if it is a labor-intensive style with many drawings. Often, an outline is made, the client goes to rest for a week while it heals, and then the rest is completed. But it all depends on the master and your capabilities. By the way, we are waiting for your stories about how you got your tattoos and what meaning the Jolly Roger tattoo has for you personally.

And here is a brief summary of this whole story:

• Meaning - are you a pirate or their fan, life and death, occultism, wisdom, challenge.
• Performance time: 5 hours, 2-3 sessions.
• The best place and style for a tattoo for men is the biceps, back (realism, old school).
• The best place and style for tattoos for women is the back, neck, feet (new school, baroque).

Photos and sketches of Jolly Roger tattoos

The Jolly Roger tattoo is one of the most popular tattoos today. But, unfortunately, many doing it do not even think about its significance.

The Jolly Roger tattoo represents one of the most striking pirate symbols, even more famous than the skull. During the days of piracy, such flags represented a warning, meaning “surrender without a fight.” It is also traditional to depict flags in shades of black rather than any other colors.

Pirates generally led a rather wild lifestyle, for example: they robbed and robbed, but at the same time they were, indeed, free people. This tattoo is primarily suitable for lovers of this particular lifestyle - without responsibility, just enjoying life. Thus, the meaning of the Jolly Roger tattoo is quite symbolic.

One variation of this image is a pirate ship. Like the Jolly Roger, he was very popular in his time, and therefore many pirates had such tattoos. Nowadays, it has become especially widespread after the release of the film “Pirates of the Caribbean”.

A bottle of rum, an eye patch, a wooden leg, a parrot on a shoulder, treasure maps, chests full of gold and, of course, a flag with the Jolly Roger - we associate all this with pirates. Pirate romance is not alien to modern adventure lovers. This is due to adventure literature and many films showing the life of sea robbers as interesting, full of risk and exciting adventures. The Jolly Roger has become a kind of symbol of pirates and everything connected with them. It is not surprising that it is also found in tattoos. Therefore, today we will take a closer look at the meaning of the Jolly Roger tattoo, the origin of this symbol and the most suitable styles for it.

Why Roger, exactly?

In fact, there was no single flag for all pirates. The flag with the image of a skull and crossbones was indeed used by pirates of the 17th-18th centuries, but not all of them. The ships of the sea robbers sailed under different flags. For example, if pirates wanted to attack a Spanish ship, they could raise the English flag, and in order to avoid a battle with an English warship, they hung the Dutch flag, because England had relatively warm relations with Holland. Everything depended on the specific situation or on the sympathy of the pirates for a particular state.

So where did the Jolly Roger come from then? It is believed that the first to depict the Jolly Roger on his flag was a certain Emmanuel Vine. There was also an hourglass next to the skull, hinting that the enemy had little time left.

The name itself has several versions of its origin. According to the first of them, the English name “Jolly Roger” comes from the French “Joyeux Rouge”, which means bright red. The fact is that the corsairs raised red flags when the enemy surrendered. The English were uncomfortable pronouncing French words, so the bright red one transformed into the consonant Jolly Roger.

The second version says that the flag received its name thanks to King Roger II of Sicily, who won many victories in naval battles. Its flag featured crossed bones on a red background.

The third version also sounds very plausible. If any contagious disease began to rage on the ship, they usually raised a black flag with two intersecting diagonal lines white. This served as a signal for other ships not to approach, so as not to endanger their crew. Pirates often took advantage of this to avoid battles with warships.

In any case, the Jolly Roger is a clear symbol of piracy and the romance of sea travel.

What will the Jolly Roger tell you about you?

The Jolly Roger doesn't care whether he shows off on female body or masculine, because the spirit of adventurism can be close to each of us. So, what does the Jolly Roger tattoo mean?

• Freedom. Pirates are perhaps the only free people of that era. Yes, their life was associated with constant risk, dangers awaited them at every step, but this did not prevent them from being free and obeying only their own will. A person who chooses a tattoo with a pirate symbol craves the same freedom. Perhaps he has even already freed himself from the shackles that society puts on us with its conventions and formalities, and now he wants to announce this to everyone around him.
• Disregarding the rules. Pirates are alien to the laws that apply to ordinary citizens; they have their own rules. The Jolly Roger tattoo indicates that a person is his own master and a law unto himself. Within reasonable limits, of course.
• Life for your own pleasure. If a person is close to the symbolism of the Jolly Roger, this indicates that he does not want to take on additional responsibility, he simply enjoys life and does not burden himself with too serious thoughts.

What styles are close to the Jolly Roger?

Talented realistic works always look cool. Realism allows you to depict the smallest details as they really are, to convey emotions, for example, an aggressive grin of a skull or a malicious grin. This style of execution is very complex, so carefully study the master’s portfolio before contacting him, because not everyone can do such work well.

Another style that is quite suitable for the Jolly Roger is old school. This style originated among sailors and is closely related to nautical themes. Bright contrasting colors and clear wide contours make the image noticeable and eye-catching.

Pirates are the kings of the seas, desperate rebels who frightened everyone, even the bravest sailors. Despite the fact that pirates were essentially robbers, they are remembered to this day. Pirate themes are also popular as tattoo ideas. Not everyone dares to depict an image of a robber and a hooligan on their body, but lovers of marine themes will like this character.

Pirate tattoos, origin story

Pirates- These are sea robbers who plied the seas and oceans, and less often rivers. The very name “Pirate” carries the meaning “Try, test.” That is, the one who engages in piracy tempts fate, tries everything to get more for himself. Pirates made their living by robbing other people's ships, often killing the entire crew of the attacked ship. In many countries, sea robbers who were finally caught were executed in public places: squares, markets.

In the minds of most, pirates are strong men, with a beard or mustache, or both. They are fearless, brutal and attract the interest of the opposite sex. Pirate tattoos, photos of which can be found on the Internet, often represent exactly this version of a sea robber. However, you can also find other options, for example, a man with a hook instead of a hand or a sexy girl in the form of a pirate, with a headband and a sword.

Example of a pirate ship tattoo on the shoulder

Is the Jolly Roger a pirate too?

Pirate flag with smile and crossed bones got its due given name –Jolly Roger. Previously, there was no single pirate flag. This was due to the fact that it was extremely important for the robbers to remain unrecognized. Pirates could not sneak up on civilian ships with such an identification mark. However, later pirates began to use this sign on their ships. There is an opinion that this happened due to the fact that during epidemics of plague or cholera, special flags were used on ships: two crossed white sticks on a black background. This meant that the ship was infected. Pirates began to use a similar image in order to avoid attacks from other ships.

Skull and Crossbones Jolly Roger: Pirate Tattoo

Important! In the original version, the Jolly Roger was adjacent to the hourglass, as if to say “Time is running out!” Pirate tattoos, whose meaning varies depending on the image, often include the Jolly Roger symbol.

Pirate ship tattoo in a storm

The meaning of a pirate tattoo

Many peoples have their own interpretation of images of pirates. So, the croutons were based directly on the meaning of this word. Therefore, for them, pirate tattoos, the sketches of which could contain any additional elements, meant a person who is looking for happiness, trying something new to find a place in life. However, not everyone adheres to this interpretation. Images of pirates on the skin can have the following meanings:

Another type of pirate tattoo in the form of a compass on the arm

• Violence and cruelty. This tattoo is preferred by people who consider themselves tough and capable of much. This designation is used mainly by men;
• Rebellion. Such tattoos are applied by both men and girls. Most often the image contains some comical elements. For example, a pirate with a bottle of rum and a parrot on his shoulder. A pirate girl in an interesting pose and an eye patch.
• Wealth Hunter. Pirates primarily obtained wealth. Therefore, their image is associated with the desire to earn a lot of money and acquire material values. Someone hopes that such an image will help him attract easy money.
• Bait for luck. Who, if not a pirate, can expect gifts from fate? It is believed that a pirate is a gentleman of fortune, a robber of seas and rivers. The image of these rebels helps fortune draw attention to the bearer of the tattoo.

Pirate tattoo in old style cheekbone

Pirate ships

Separately, it is worth noting pirate ships, which are also common among tattoo lovers. If a simple ship is primarily associated with a romantic nature, and only secondarily with freedom, then tattoos with a pirate ship are a symbol of ease of movement and a protest against existing rules and laws. Such images are painted by those who love adventure and change of place..

Recently I painted an image of a ship on my back, and not just a simple one, but one decorated with a pirate flag. It took me a long time to choose a sketch; I wanted it to emphasize my slightly hooligan character and love of rebellion. But I also had a desire to express my feminine sentimentality. I think this tattoo was just right for me!

Anna, Volgograd

Pirate with a dagger in his teeth

Myths associated with pirates

One of the main myths associated with the personality of a pirate is the famous black armband. At that time, many people had vision problems; this did not mean that these people belonged to thieves or robbers. However, after the mention of such a headband in the book “Treasure Island”, few pirates can do without this unique accessory.

This is interesting! There were pirates who received permission for their criminal activities from the rulers. They were called privateers. They had unique licenses in their hands, which stated that everything done by this pirate was done for the benefit of the state. In turn, the “offended” captain of the robbed ship was allowed to apply for the same paper in order to take revenge on the offender.

Pirate tattoo with one eye

There is also a myth that pirates hid their treasures in caves or buried treasure in the ground. However, this is also called into question. The age of the pirate is short-lived, so all funds were spent almost immediately in the nearest taverns. Although perhaps someone was lucky enough to find a pirate treasure.

I got a pirate tattoo on almost my entire back. I'm depicting a pirate in the best Stevenson tradition: with an eyepatch, wide pants, and a bandana tied around him. I immediately liked this sketch. There is some kind of recklessness in him! I recommend that all freedom lovers make themselves a drawing of a pirate.

Oleg, Zelenodolsk

Video selection of tattoos with pirates