HAA 0010 Lecture Notes - Lecture 17: Peony, Apotropaic Magic, Kouros
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25 Mar 2015
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March 23
Body and Identity, Part 1: Adornment
Tattoos in Polynesia
Marquesan Warrior Decorated with Tattoos
•tattoo comes from the Tahitian word “tatau”
oto tap, mark, or strike
•in Polynesia, both men and women would tattoo
omales more extensively
oin certain cultures, tattoos cover the whole body, and in others, it’s mainly on the
face
omeaning fluctuates among cultures
•two methods used to tattoo
otap
ostrike
oink is spread into the holes created
•purposes:
ostatus symbol: nobility/high status or undesirable: slave, defeated enemy
omark as family member
orite of passage or commemoration of events
oshows bravery and pain tolerance
omarks the barrier between the body and the outside to protect it: apotropaic
symbol
spiritual armor
Portrait of Maori Chief Te Pehi Kupe and Self-Portrait
•European portrait has him wearing European clothing
oassimilation into European culture
•self-portrait focuses more on the actual tattoos: monumental
okoru: unrolled scroll forms at the top of the mask
show descent from important families
•European portrait seems to be capturing a moment in time
•ethnography: description of customs of people and culture
ostudying and drawing “exotic” people
•noble savage: celebration of people who come from “uncivilized” places and tribes
oromanticizing and idealizing the idea that they could live off the land, but still
look down on them for being “lesser” than the Europeans
Tattoos in Japan
•tattoos started out representation, then became figural
•tattoos started out small: act of love, symbols of luck or of victory
•irezumi: Japanese tattoos
•in Edo period of Japan, society was segregated and what each class could do was
controlled by the government
olower class members of society got tattoos as a form of rebellion
Du Xing and Photograph of a Courier with Tattoos