Handpoked Ravens | In Norse mythology, Huginn and Muninn roughly „mind and will“ are a pair of ravens that serve under the god Odin, flying around the world, or better Midgard, and bringing him information and gossip. Huginn and Muninn are attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources: the Prose Edda and Heimskringla. In the Third Grammatical Treatise, compiled in the 13th century by Óláfr Þórðarson and in the poetry of skalds.

Urnes Style inspired Nordic Tattoo with the godess Skadi as a symbol. All handpoked and freehand drawn on the skin. The Urnes style is an art style from the late Viking age, used around c. 1050–1125 AD.

The name of the style comes from the ornamentation on the portal of the Urnes stave church you see below in Vestland County, Norway, and was coined by the Norwegian archaeologist Haakon Shetelig (1877–1955) in 1909.

The Urnes style is the last phase of Viking art. The style is a refinement of the Ringerike style and depends upon interplay of gracefully curving lines for its effect.

The animals are still curvaceous and one or more snakes are included with the quadrupeds. The spiral hip is still used, but it is not as large as in the Mammen and Ringerike styles. The animals have large almond-shaped eyes and often bite one another.

The Urnes style was also often used on runic stones, when the runic inscription was carried within the body of the animal. A good example from Lingsberg, Uppland, Sweden, has a Christian cross and two Urnes style animals which carry the runic inscription.

A handpoked tattoo sleeve done in several sessions.

Urnes Stav Church. Image: WikiArt

This tattoo was inspired by the Ringerike Style wind velvet in gold-plated bronze you see on the last slide. This find from the Viking Age 750 – 1100 AD is exhibited @historiska in Stockholm.

The Söderala vane (Swedish: Söderalaflöjeln) is a weather vane dating from the Viking Age, richly ornamented and made of gilt bronze. It derives its name from Söderala Church in Söderala, Sweden, where it was used as a weather vane during the 18th century. It was most probably originally used as a vane on a Viking ship, and shows signs of wear. On stylistic grounds, it has been dated to c. 1050. It is today part of the collections of the Swedish History Museum. A copy of the vane is in Söderala.

The Söderala vane consists of a triangular plate, made of gilt bronze and reinforced by smaller bronze plates and rivets in some places. A small sculpture of an animal, kept separately from the vane when it was bought by the museum, was originally attached to the top end of the bronze plate. The curved edge of the plate is pierced by several small holes, in which some kind of loosely hanging decorations may once have been attached. The plate itself is decorated with depictions of three beasts, interlaced with each other and with other purely decorative elements such as spirals, in a style closely related to that of Swedish burial monuments from the middle of the 11th century. The main decorative element is a depiction of a Norse dragon with wings, its forelegs and neck stretched somewhat like a horse about to rise. Its back is comparatively small. The dragon is very similar to a dragon depicted on a tombstone from the mid-11th century from Sundby Church in Södermanland, Sweden. Another creature lies coiled around the forelegs of the dragon, while the third, legless, is wrapped around the body of the dragon.

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I made this Nordic Tattoo Sleeve for a wonderful person inspired by the famous Gotland Picture Stone (Hammar Stone I). It tells his life-story in the visual language of the picture stone. Family, worklife, important events. lifechanging events. Everything combined to one picture around the arm. Everything is connected like life is.

The Stora Hammars I picture stone (GP 253) on Gotland, Sweden, is a limestone monument measuring approximately 391 cm in height and 162 cm in width. Dating to around 700–1000 AD (Lindqvist Type C/D), it is characterized as a tall, slender stone featuring six panels of detailed, mythological carvings. Stora Hammars, Lärbro parish, Gotland. You will find the stone on Gotland (@bungemuseet) Bunge Museet.

I love to do these storytelling tattoos. I like to freehand and help you to tell and visualize your story on your skin. I work in Sweden, Västra Götaland @vik__ink studio and also in Germany @ancientskin.tattoo.studio — Handpoke or Machine Tattoos.

#nordictattoo #dotworktattooartist #handpoked #tattoosweden #runetattoo

A handpoked sleeve (work in progress) inspired by the heraldry of Denmark. The idea is to put all three lions and the hearts into the sleeve. On the top there is a spirit animal, the bear (also a link to the heraldry, where Greenland is represented with the polar-bear). And again: This is not a political statement, this is something for the soul! 🙏🏻

The state coat of arms of Denmark (rigsvåben) consists of three pale blue lions passant wearing crowns, accompanied by nine red lilypads (normally represented as heraldic hearts), all in a golden shield with the royal crown on top.

The national coat of arms of Denmark (nationalvåben, also called lille våben) is similar to the state coat of arms, but without the royal crown above the shield.

All Handpoked over several sessions in Germany and Sweden. There is still some work that needs to be done. Looking forward to the next time. Nordic Tattoo in Västra Götaland, Sweden.

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Handpoked wolfman warrior tattoo – The Torslunda helmet plates are four cast bronze dies found in Torslunda parish on Öland, Sweden, displaying figures in relief depicting scenes from Germanic mythology. Discovered in 1870, they are now housed @historiska i Stockholm and are famous for their complete mythological scenes. Dating back to the Vendel Period (550-800), each plate features different mythological designs, including depictions of warriors and figures reminiscent of Norse gods like Odin. Plate number 2 notably shows a figure with a missing right eye, suggesting Odin, who sacrificed an eye for wisdom. This figure is accompanied by a wolfman, interpreted as a berserker, symbolizing the frenzy of battle. They were likely used for mass production by placing foil against the scenes and applying pressure from the back.

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