It’s no secret that tattoos are extremely popular in our society. These days, not having a tattoo has become a rare thing. This 102-year-old tattoo artist in the Philippines is keeping an old tattooing tradition alive, with people from all over the world seeking her out for her rare art form.
See how this awesome 102-year-old tattoo artist is keeping the tradition alive with her ink. Scroll down!
This 102-year-old woman in the Philippines is carrying on the tradition of hand-tapped tattoos, also know as mambabatok.
102-year-old Whang-Od Oggay wakes up every morning to make ink from pine soot and water, she does this preparing for the mambabatok tattoos that’ll she’ll do for the day. This type of tattoo is an ancient, hand-tapped tattoo that not many people can do, which is why people flock from all parts of the world for a tattoo from the amazing old woman. Whang-Od is the oldest person in the Philippines who practices this unique form of tattooing.
Using only a thorn, foot-long bamboo stick, coal, and water, the traditional Kalinga tattooist inks people from all over. With the primitive tools, Whang-od designs lines, shapes, tribal print and animals, all that hold special meanings, like strength or fertility. Using the bamboo stick to tap the thorn, you slowly pound the ink in, until a design is formed
People seeking a tattoo from Whang-od, have to make the 15-hour drive up from Manila, then hike a mile through the forest just to get to her.
On top of traveling from wherever they are from, the tattoo enthusiast who wants a tattoo form Whang-od must make the 15-hour drive up north from Manila to a mountain village called Buscalan, where they must hike a mile through the forest. Now that’s some dedication!
In this old tradition, they believe the art must be passed down the bloodline or else the tattoos become infected.
In order to carry on this mambabatok tradition, the people believe you must pass down the art through blood relatives only. They believe their tattoos will be infected if they don’t pass the tradition down through bloodline, this is why Whang-od’s father was the one who taught her and also why shes trained her grandnieces the rare tattooing art form, Kalinga.
This ancient tattooing art form started with the indigenous ButBut Warriors, and you’ll never believe why their men used to get the tattoos.
The indigenous butbut warriors in the mountains of Kalinga were the first to do the ancient form of tattooing called hand-tapping. The interesting thing is why the men of the tribes used to get the tattoos, here’s why.
The butbut men only got the hand-tapped tattoos after killing someone in battle, so if you saw a guy with a lot, he was likely a fierce warrior. For the woman of the tribe, the tattoos were considered beautiful so they could get them on any occasion.
This 102-year-old tattoo artist will blow your mind – keeping alive an ancient art form. Watch the video below!
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