Russian prison tattoos and meanings

Beetle, spider, fly on a background of the prison bars or entangled in the web of the network — indicates that most of his life was spent in prisons. Share on Facebook Share on Twitter. He has been repeatedly punished for violating the rules of the penal colony and is committed to a life of crime.

The ink created and worn in Russian prisons is a mysterious and often intimidating part of the world of tattoos. These tattoos often represent a hostile set of beliefs, a crime, or where the wearer stands in the criminal underworld. However, they can be helpful for prison authorities because they can give vital information. For example, sometimes tattoos are enough to send a person back to prison or even save the life of a man with a badge. Soviet period prison tattoos hid an elaborate and rich visual language. The origins of these prison tattoos can be traced back to the early age 19th century. At this time, the government initiated a practice of tattooing "KAT" on the faces of convicted criminals.

Russian prison tattoos and meanings

Throughout history, those shunned by society have sought unity amongst themselves by creating a language of allegiance and ranking through the ink embedded in their skin. Criminals and convicts all over the world have come together to create their own language by tattooing symbols onto themselves as a way to communicate what they have done and show others that they are not afraid or ashamed. There is nowhere else on Earth where that is more true than in the Russian prison system. Every prisoner is marked, every drop of ink holds meaning, and the symbols are a language in and of themselves. Each body tells a unique story of time served and crimes committed. There are typically inmates jammed into a cell, and they have to take turns sleeping due to limited space and bunks. Russian prisons are well-known for being dangerous and violent, ignoring humanity in favor of strict punishment. Almost every resident of Moscow knows someone that has been to prison, or has been sent there themselves. In the years after World War II, petty crimes were severely punished, and a citizen could wind up with a prison sentence of 5 to 10 years for a crime as minimal as stealing a loaf of bread. This slang term was short for the Russian word for criminal, and was used to show society that the person wearing the tattoo had been to prison. It marked them as dangerous men, and kept them separate from the rest of the residents of Russia. Before too long, prisoners became proud of the marking, as it showed the world that they were not to be messed with.

Tattoos signifying addictions.

During the 20th century in the Soviet Union , Russian criminal and prison communities maintained a culture of using tattoos to indicate members' criminal career and ranking. Specifically among those imprisoned under the Gulag system of the Soviet era, the tattoos served to differentiate a criminal leader or thief in law from a political prisoner. The practice grew in the s, peaking in the s and declining in popularity in the s and s. The branding of criminals was practised in Russia long before tattooing was customary, and was banned in In the 19th century, a "pricked" cross on the left hand was often used to identify deserters from the army, and up until , criminals sentenced to hard labour were branded "BOP" thief , the letters on the forehead and cheeks.

This is one of the most widespread tattoo designs that is easily recognizable in the Russian criminal underworld. Only a convict who has served his time can get a church or a kremlin tattooed on his body. Also, the number of domes is not random; it equals the number of prison terms served by the owner of the tattoo. A spider tattoo tells everybody that its owner is a thief. A spider that appears to climb upwards is a message that its owner is dedicated to being a thief and does not intend to cease his criminal endeavors. On the contrary, a spider that appears to descend downwards means that the person has pledged to stop stealing. In certain cases, a spider who appears to be caught in his web might indicate that the person with the tattoo has a drug addiction. A tattoo depicting a cat is a symbol of pickpocket thieves. A cat holding keys may suggest a burglar. In the Russian criminal tattoo code, a rose is the symbol of a blighted youth.

Russian prison tattoos and meanings

Russian prison tattoos are a unique form of body art with a long and storied history. However, over time, these tattoos have taken on a life of their own, developing intricate designs and meanings that speak to the experiences and struggles of those who wear them. Russian prison tattoos have been around since the early 20th century, when they were first used as a way for inmates to communicate with one another and assert their dominance within the prison system.

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The barbed wire denotes the length of a single sentence with each barb representing a year served. More galleries. Tattooing has evolved into a widely embraced and nearly mainstream art form, despite its origins in prison systems and the ingenuity developed within them. Stars on the chest mark a higher rank. Since Russia has such strict punishments for all crimes, many times a life of crime is started with an act as simple as vandalism, and punished by years in prison. Work lasted for twenty months between and , costing the lives of over , political and criminal prisoners. Tattoos had to be earned through physical acts or other ways of standing up to authority, whether it was inside or outside of the prison. Takedown from a figure-four hold. God Himself is with me! Older Generations still stigmatize tattoos in Russia. The tattoo of a tiger is a sign of aggression. Various cat tattoos. I have always grasped and still grasp my glass with firm and steady hands!

The ink created and worn in Russian prisons is a mysterious and often intimidating part of the world of tattoos. These tattoos often represent a hostile set of beliefs, a crime, or where the wearer stands in the criminal underworld.

Chest, hip, thigh. There is nowhere else on Earth where that is more true than in the Russian prison system. He was unconscious and had a serious head wound. If the spider is crawling down, this means the thief is done with the criminal life. Archived from the original on July 31, They aimed to take authority away from those in power, transforming a punitive act into a badge of honor they willingly embraced. The symbol of female thieves. A tattoo of a mermaid often indicates a sentence for child molestation. The number of barbs on the wire indicates the total term of the sentence in this case 8 years. He had served a total of thirty-two years in prison for large scale thefts of state and personal property. A cat holding keys may suggest a burglar. While numerous criminal societies and gangs worldwide have distinctive markings and codes, such as the Camorra in Naples or the Bloods and Crips in Los Angeles, the Russian prison tattoo tradition stands out for its unique characteristics. He had served time in Perm, Solikamsk, Sverdlovsk and Vorkuta. Lenin is very much alive. Various tattoos depicting portraits of women.