Tuesday 18 February 2014

the world's most painful tattoos? Ethiopian and Sudanese tribes show off their intricate raised patterns created using THORNS

                         Ethiopia                                       
From delicate swirls of raised flesh to intricate dotted patterns, the scars that decorate the bodies of Ethiopia's Bodi, Mursi and Surma tribes are more than just the sign of an old injury.
For these aren't just any scars: They're an elaborate part of local culture and signify everything from beauty to adulthood or even, in some cases, are simply a mark of belonging.


But Ethiopian tribes aren't the only ones to embrace scarification. In Uganda, the Karamojong are famous for their elaborate scar patterns, while across Ethiopia's border with Sudan, Nuer men bear scarred foreheads and consider getting them a key part of the transition from boy to man.

A Surma woman shows off her intricate markings                                 Along with scar patterns, nearly all Surma women wear lip plates                                                       A Menit girl shows off her markings                                         A Menit girl with facial markings                                        Beauty: A woman from the Menit tribe who live close to the Surma in the Omo Valley. Both are currently under threat of being displaced by encroaching plantations                                                                  Shoulder patterns belonging to a Dassanech woman                       A Surma girl shows off scar markings on her head and forehead                                                                      Ceremony: A Surma scarification ritual using thorns and a razor is carried out on a 12-year-old girl who volunteered to be scarred                                       Painful: Although the process isn't without pain, Lafforgue says the girl kept a straight face throughout in order not to shame her family                                                                    End result: After the initial cut, scars have organic sap or ash rubbed into them in order to make them heal as raised bumps                                                            A Surma mother shows her scar patterns while feeding her baby                                              Both men and women Surma have scar patterns                                           A Toposa woman shows off her facial markings                                                 A Toposa man with delicate markings on his face                                            A closer look at Toposa tribe markings                                               A Toposa man shows off his scars                                           Distinctive: Many Nuer men are eschewing 'gaar' lines such as these because they are a clear indication of belonging to the tribe - dangerous when conflict looms                                                               A Karrayyu woman                                                 A man from the Mursi tribe                                            Popular: Facial tattoos are particularly common among the Afar, especially for women, and can include both dot and line patterns                                                              Tradition: Other tribes to embrace scarification include the Afar people, who live in Northern Ethiopia and are famous for using butter in their hair                                                               Bodi women, who also live in the Omo Valley, also scarify their bodies                                            A Bodi woman shows off her scar tattoos                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         posted by Emanto Ngaloru  Feb 18, 2014.
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