Tattoo: Secrets of a Strange Art as Practised among the Natives of the United States
New York: Simon and Schuster, 1933. First printing. Color and black and white illustrations. Cloth over boards. Octavo. xii, 171 pages. Bound in salmon-colored cloth over boards with printed spine label. Some fading to spine, minor water tide markings to top of upper board and top edge of lower joint, with same tide marks repeated sporadically at top edge of some leaves. Moderate soil to exterior, boards have shallow bumps extremities. Mild foxing in places inside. All in all, a good copy that was used by a tattoo artist.
An important book, believed to be the first on the history and art of American tattooing. Tattoos were mostly worn by sailors, criminals, and prostitutes when this work first appeared in 1933.
Parry went to waterfront tattoo parlors, circus midways, and other shady sites to interview some of the great tattoo artists of the day. Now legendary tattooists such as Charlie Wagner and Albert "Lew the Jew" Kurzman shared information about their techniques with Parry. Contains much historical research as well. An excellent bibliography of works in various languages concludes this fascinating volume.
Item #1029
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