American Trad Part 3: Symbolism
Is there a meaning behind the more popular trad style tattoos, like sparrows or pinups?
This Q&A question fits perfectly in with the American Trad series I’ve been slowly working on so this week we are doing part 3: symbolism. Now there are a ton of symbols in traditional tattooing so I’ll provide additional resources for the images I don’t cover and maybe I’ll do another article on some that I missed in the future. So here is, at least, a partial answer to your question.
Now almost any image you can get tattooed, you could likely get an American Trad style version of that, those often have more personal meanings for people getting them tattooed. The original Trad images though, do typically have a universal meaning. These were often worn by sailors and military men (Check out American Trad part 1 for more context) so many of the meanings have to do with life at or over seas. For more symbolism that I haven’t covered https://tattmag.com/american-traditional-tattoo/ has an extensive list of traditional tattoos and their meanings, https://sailorjerry.com/en/tattoos/ also has some interesting stories behind traditional tattoos these were my 2 main sources for this. (all photos below have the artist in the caption).
Swallows/Sparrows
Swallow tattoos are huge in American Traditional work, swallows have forked tails and are often coloured with blue bodies, red breasts, and yellow accents. Swallows were a badge of honor for sailors at the time indicating that they’ve travelled 5000 miles by sea. They are often seen in pairs with a sailor getting one before the long voyage and one when they returned. Swallows can also symbolize a promise to return home, they are migratory birds who return to the same place in San Juan Capistrano every year. Building on this a legend among sailors, is that if they died at sea and had swallow tattoos, the swallows would carry their soul home to heaven.
Sparrows are less common, and most images that people mistake for sparrows are actually swallows. Sparrows in tattoos often have religious connotations.
Pinups
Pinup girls are one of the tattoos that have been around since the beginning of American Traditional. They’re often gotten without any meaning just because the images are so alluring and popularized for their attractive look. Often sailors or military men going overseas had pinup tattoos and these would be the only images of a woman that they would see in months. These tattoos can represent extreme femininity and perfection. Over time pinup tattoos have become iconic, especially the old school ones that people like Bert Grimm and Sailor Jerry tattooed.
Anchor
Anchors are still very common tattoos today, and across time they have maintained the same meaning. Anchors are symbolic of stability and what keeps you grounded. This is why often you’ll see anchors that say mom, dad, or even a sweetheart’s name.
Rooster and pig
This is probably one of my favourite tattoo meanings that the sailors had, just because it’s so unique. During a shipwreck the crates that they kept the chicken and pigs in below deck happened to be the perfect floatation device. So in the wreckage of a ship often the chickens and pigs had the highest survival rate. A sailor might get a chicken tattooed on the top of their right foot and a matching pig on the left foot, hoping to give themselves good luck at sea.
Snakes
Again snakes can have a few different meanings but there are two common ones in American Trad. A snake can sometimes be representing a person’s bravery or power which made them popular with the American Trad clientele as they go to face war or rough seas. Snakes are also associated with new beginnings because they shed their skin and are often symbolic of transformation. Coiled up snakes who appear ready to strike have been gotten to ward off evil and misfortune since they can have a don’t tread on me meaning.
Ships
Sailing ships were obviously connected to a sailors life but they were gotten for more than just their literal meaning. The sailing ship tattoo is often used as a metaphor for life, “at times water may be turbulent and sunshine may be scarce but you have to learn how to navigate through it with courage and grace” (tatmag). So the ship was transformed from just representing a lifestyle to a sailors philosophy on life.
Shellback turtle
These specific turtle tattoos were earned by sailors who sailed across the equator. Though many sailor tattoos were done upon arriving home from shops such as Bert Grimm’s many also collected these in shops overseas. Sailor Jerry for example retired to the Hawiian islands after WW2 and tattooed the sailors passing through with things like the shellback turtle.
Sources:
- “American Traditional Tattoos: History, Meanings, Artists & Designs.” Tattmag, 7 Apr. 2021, tattmag.com/american-traditional-tattoo/.
- “Tattoos.” Sailor Jerry, sailorjerry.com/en/tattoos/.
- Goenka, Shruti. “12 Inspiring Swallow And Sparrow Tattoos.” STYLECRAZE, 26 Dec. 2019, www.stylecraze.com/articles/sparrow-tattoo-designs/.
