Celtic Tattoos - Celtic Tattoo Designs

Celtic tattoos are one of the fastest-growing forms of flash in the entire world. Inspired by the colorful drawings that adorned ancient Celtic manuscripts like the Book of Kells, Celtic tattoos offer the wearer a very decorative and flexible style that can be as complex or as simple as the wearer desires.

Celtic tattoo art is instantly recognizable with its color, complex knots, interlacing patterns, and highly stylized animal forms which are known as zoomorphism. They are often done in black and skin tone although color can be added to brighten the tattoo. Like tribal art, Celtic tattoos stress the importance of communicating a feeling rather than attempting to represent a specific physical object—and this gives them much of their power and their permanence.

One of the most powerful of these Celtic tattoo symbols is the Celtic cross. For years Celtic culture ruled most of Europe and specifically Ireland and Britain. But this all changed when the Romans came in and kicked major ass. When monks brought Christianity to Britain they adopted the ancient Celtic style of art infused with the symbolism of Christianity. It was a genius move because the conversion stuck and today the Celtic cross, with its nod to both ancient pre-Christian worlds and modern antiquity, is probably one of the most popular tattoos in the world.

But that doesn’t mean they’re easy to do. Interlacing knots, a chief feature of Celtic tattoo art and a symbol of the constancy life, is one of the reasons why these tattoos are so difficult to create. With their cyclical design and symbolic emphasis on knots that have no beginning and no end, Celtic tattoos, like no other style, require a skilled practitioner. Make sure that before you get your own Celtic tattoo that you go to a tattoo artist who specializes in Celtic tattoo art. When done well, it can be one of the most decorative and meaningful tattoos out there. When done poorly…well best not to even think about that.