prison tattoos
Cellblock body art
Prison tattoos are tattoos acquired while incarcerated, typically applied with improvised equipment—guitar strings, pen ink, melted plastic.
They often carry coded meanings: gang affiliations, crimes committed, years served, or status within prison hierarchies.
Teardrops, spider webs, and specific numbers communicate to those who know how to read them.
The rough, hand-poked style is distinctive and sometimes replicated outside prison for aesthetic reasons.
- inkWriting fluid
- jailhouseFacility for holding prisoners
- teardropSingle unit of crying
- gangOrganized criminal group
- gang signsHand gestures indicating membership
spider web · clock · barbed wire · convict · behind bars · doing time · needle · homemade · skull · sleeve · knuckles · shank · yard · cellblock · brotherhood · loyalty · respect · shame
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