New Technique Reveals Hidden Patterns in Tattoos of 1,200-Year-Old Peru Mummies

Archaeologists have revealed that the intricate details of tattoos on centuries-old mummies in Peru have been uncovered using a new laser-based technique.
According to reports, however, not everyone agrees that this new technique is superior to existing methods for analyzing historical tattoos.
The researchers studied more than 100 mummified human remains from the Chancay culture, which inhabited Peru from about AD 900 to 1533. The study was published on January 13 in the journal PNAS.
Michael Pittman, a paleobiologist at The Chinese University of Hong Kong and co-author of the study, told Live Science, “Only three of these individuals had highly detailed tattoos made up of fine lines that were only 0.1 to 0.2mm thick, which could only be seen with our new technique.”
The technique used is laser-stimulated fluorescence (LSF). LSF creates images based on the fluorescence of a sample, revealing details that may be missed by simple ultraviolet (UV) light examination.
It works by making the tattooed skin fluoresce bright white, which makes the carbon-based black tattoo ink stand out clearly.
Additionally, this almost completely eliminates the issue of tattoos bleeding and fading over time, which can obscure the design, as stated in the study.
The three highly detailed tattoos revealed on the mummified remains were “predominantly geometric patterns featuring triangles, which are also found in other Chancay artistic media like pottery and textiles,” said Pittman. Other Chancay tattoos included vine-like and animal designs.