Aztec Tattoo Designs

Most tribal culture tattoos have religious meanings attached to them. These religious faiths define the Aztec tattoo designs as well. Aztec tattoos depict the rites of passages, although in modern day society these do not exist however, the beautiful art of Aztec tattoo designs do exist even today.

A Little About Aztec Civilization
The Aztec civilization is one of the most advanced of ancient civilizations. It existed around the area, of what is known as today New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and Colorado. These people later migrated to what is now the central Mexican region. They were considered to be more superior, prosperous and thriving of all the other civilizations. The Aztecs built sophisticated cities and they were also culturally well developed. In the Aztec culture tribal tattoos were made to differentiate between members of different tribes. At the same time there were some tattoos, which were made to depict a warrior’s hierarchy and rank. To know more information you can read Aztec story of creation.

Aztec Tattoo Designs
Although the Aztec civilization has been wiped out by the Spaniards, there are a lot of people who still want to show their allegiance to this ancient culture. Therefore, they sport Aztec tattoos as a majority of Aztec tattoos have meanings. The Aztec tattoo meanings either have a religious blend to them or these tattoos mean what the person stands for in his belief. These tattoos are placed at strategic locations on the body, with a specific purpose.

One of the prominent features of an Aztec tattoo design is that it is intricate, colorful, bold and has various geometric shapes like pyramids, etc. Often, people are deceived by the simplicity of these tattoo designs. To get the right look, it is important that the tattoo artist is a master at his craft, as a small mistake can also create a havoc and make the tattoo look bad. You can choose to have symbols from Aztec language for your tattoo, but there are very few people who are able to decipher the symbols correctly, at the same time they aren't translated well enough. Most of the tattoo artists tattoo only those symbols which they understand completely.

Aztec Tattoos and Meanings
Lets focus a little on Aztec tattoos and their meanings. A lot of people get the tattoo of the sun etched on themselves. In the Aztec culture the sun represents a guardian who guards the heaven and at the same time, the sun also is responsible for regeneration and renewal. People who also have a belief in life after death get themselves tattooed with the symbol of sun. The sun tattoos were also made in the honor of the Aztec sun God "Huitzilopochtli". Some people also get a warrior tattoo made. As these people believe that they are like warriors in whatever they do, therefore they do whatever it takes to win. It is said that the Aztec warriors did everything that they could for their people. This is where people draw their inspiration from. In the Aztec tattoo designs, calender and eagle designs also feature a lot along with warrior and sun tattoo designs. The calender Aztec tattoo design often is filled with images, which has representation of the sun with various facial expressions. The Eagle tattoo is often placed on a warrior tattoo. An eagle represents courage, power and strength, due to the eagles amazing flying skills, strong nature and large size. The feathered serpent god "Quetzalcoatl" represents creativity, fertility and weather. At the same time he was also the most powerful of all Aztec gods. For more information, you can refer to Aztec mythology and Aztec gods.

For more information read

• Aztec Temples
• Aztec Pyramids

When you chose your Aztec tattoo design, it is important that you get a design which will suit your personality well. At the same the meaning the tattoo design is going to depict, is of extreme importance. Before you decide on a design, remember to research well. You will find a lot of free Aztec tattoo designs on the internet. However, I opine that you should have a creative design as most people looking on the Internet for free Aztec tattoo designs will also be able to find similar patterns. You can also talk to your tattoo artist, before you finalize your tattoo design. The other way is to get a temporary tattoo made and if you are comfortable with the end product, you can get a permanent design made. Aztec tattoo designs are different than other regular tattoos, as they are most striking to look at due to the use of bright colors.