body art

In the celtic times they used to paint there faces when they went into battle. The paint they used was blue and they made it with extracts from the Isatis tinctoria plant (also known as woad) although the woad plant is acually yellow it gives off a very dark blue dye and also quite a strong smell,so strong that in medieval times woaders were send to work outside the town because of the smell.

The native indians used charcoal and ocher (a redish clay) ,bird excrement, plants, fruits mixed with animal fat and hot water to make their war paints. Branches and animal bones were used as brushes, they painted shapes such as stripes, triangles, circle and dots on their bodys. Usually a tribe would have a "trade mark painting of colour or design".

Tatooing is another form of body art ,tatoo derived from the polynesian word "tatu" which means to mark something. In many cultures tatoos symbolise something, either Gods they worshiped or religious journeys, decoration. In the pazyryk culture the tatoos symbolised your social status, but for example in India tatoos on the arms and legs showed strength. Tatoos were a part of many other cultures such as the Celts, Greeks and the New Zealands.