Tattoo Hunter – Lars Krutak

I just found out about this awesome show called Tattoo Hunter from the Discovery Channel. This reality TV show follows Tattoo Anthropologist (that’s not a term you hear every day!) Lars Krutak as he investigates ancient body modification rituals from around the globe – including Brazil, Ethiopa, northeast India and Papua New Guinea. Krutak is an American anthropologist whose specialty is traditional tattooing and permanent body art.

This series follows Krutak as he immerses himself in the daily life of warriors, cannibals and headhunters and seeks to understand their ancient traditions of tattooing and scarification. On his trip to Papua New Guinea, Krutak actually undergoes the process of receiving painful “crocodile cuts” to his upper body in the traditional Sepik initiation ritual, whilst at the Kaningara village on the Blackwater river.

So keep your eyes and ears out for this show on the Discovery Channel – it is well worth it!

If you are interested in traditional tattooing then you might like to check out Lars’ book The Tattooing Arts of Tribal Women – which is totally awesome and has some of the most amazing photographs of ancient tribal tattoos on women!