R.W.B. Scutt and Christopher Gotch

Although there is evidence of tattooing in ancient Europe, the tattoos of modern Western society did not evolve directly from European roots. Rather, the artistic forms were imported by sailors returning from expeditions to the Polynesian islands of the South Pacific in the late 1700s and early 1800s.

During his service as a registered nurse in the British Royal Navy, Surgeon Captain R.W.B. Scutt has seen tens of thousands of modern tattooed sailors. In his book Art, Sex, and Symbol: The Mystery of Tattooing, Scutt seeks to clarify the myths and legends that surround the experiences of these sailors' forefathers, the early explorers of the South Pacific who first encountered the tattooed natives of the Polynesian islands.