Join the conversation
Log in or create an account to leave a comment
Log In
generally saw tattoo
as a desecration of the body. So when British explorer
Captain James Cook landed on the Pacific island
of Tahiti in 1769, he and his men recorded
the indigenous tattoo practices. As Cook wrote: "Both sexes paint their bodies, Tattow,
as it is called in their language." The Tahitian word "tatau" is now
the word used all around the world. But almost as soon as Europeans
discovered Pacific tattooing, they began erasing it. Waves of colonizers and missionaries
who followed voyages like Cook's took control of the islands
and banned traditional tattooing. [Lars Krutak] Once you could remove
the tattooing from the people, it made it much easier to subjugate them
to these Western ideals and break these indigenous patterns
of local power and belief
as a desecration of the body. So when British explorer
Captain James Cook landed on the Pacific island
of Tahiti in 1769, he and his men recorded
the indigenous tattoo practices. As Cook wrote: "Both sexes paint their bodies, Tattow,
as it is called in their language." The Tahitian word "tatau" is now
the word used all around the world. But almost as soon as Europeans
discovered Pacific tattooing, they began erasing it. Waves of colonizers and missionaries
who followed voyages like Cook's took control of the islands
and banned traditional tattooing. [Lars Krutak] Once you could remove
the tattooing from the people, it made it much easier to subjugate them
to these Western ideals and break these indigenous patterns
of local power and belief
Full Transcript
00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:04.001
generally saw tattoo
as a desecration of the body.
00:00:04.921 --> 00:00:07.256
So when British explorer
Captain James Cook
00:00:07.034 --> 00:00:10.676
landed on the Pacific island
of Tahiti in 1769,
00:00:11.052 --> 00:00:13.805
he and his men recorded
the indigenous tattoo practices.
00:00:14.043 --> 00:00:15.556
As Cook wrote:
00:00:15.064 --> 00:00:19.852
"Both sexes paint their bodies, Tattow,
as it is called in their language."
00:00:20.394 --> 00:00:24.232
The Tahitian word "tatau" is now
the word used all around the world.
00:00:25.399 --> 00:00:28.694
But almost as soon as Europeans
discovered Pacific tattooing,
00:00:28.778 --> 00:00:30.196
they began erasing it.
00:00:30.279 --> 00:00:33.095
Waves of colonizers and missionaries
who followed voyages like Cook's
00:00:34.001 --> 00:00:37.161
took control of the islands
and banned traditional tattooing.
00:00:37.662 --> 00:00:40.331
[Lars Krutak] Once you could remove
the tattooing from the people,
00:00:40.414 --> 00:00:45.092
it made it much easier to subjugate them
to these Western ideals
00:00:46.001 --> 00:00:50.174
and break these indigenous patterns
of local power and belief.
Want This Clip in HD?
Upgrade for HD/4K downloads and unlimited access. Upgrade now →
Movie Summary
A documentary series that looks to explore the big questions of today.
![[narrator] That's not what
Mexico City's been doing. - Explained](https://clip.cafe/img400/narrator-thats-not-what-mexico-citys-been-doing.jpg)
![[narrator] With all that time and space,
the math seems pretty clear. - Explained](https://clip.cafe/img400/narrator-with-all-time-space-the-math-seems-pretty-clear.jpg)
![[narrator] The leaves and stems contain
some psychoactives, but not that much. - Explained](https://clip.cafe/img400/narrator-the-leaves-stems-contain-some-psychoactives-not-much.jpg)
![[Mandvi] And the colonies
got a new opportunity - Explained](https://clip.cafe/img400/mandvi-and-the-colonies-got-a-new-opportunity.jpg)
