Born in Polynesia, the tattoo was brought back to Europe by Cook at the end of the 18thC. The word comes from 'tatau' which means 'to hit'. Tattooers introduced a natural candlenut dye under the skin and hammered the patterns with a mallet and a fish teethed adze. Supposed to value and protect its wearer, it had an aesthetic, social and ritual function. Forbidden by the missionaries, the art of tattooing has been booming since the 1980s.