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Mermaids in Tattoo Traditions

Mermaids in tattoo traditions are not just decorative sea-women. In tattoo history, the mermaid is one of the great maritime body-images: she can stand for the allure and danger of the sea, a sailor’s distance from women on shore, a talismanic memory of voyage, old-school flash style, or even urban belonging in the case of civic mermaid tattoos like Warsaw’s Syrenka. Tattooing gives the mermaid a special intensity because the image is worn on the body rather than merely viewed.