They are tiny, usually smaller than a grown man’s hand, but they give a vicious sting.  The scorpion looks as if it was made to fight. They look almost as if they are covered in armor and the upraised curved stinger hanging over their back says “bring it on!” to all comers.

Scorpions are actually predatory arthropods. Animals, in other words, in the family of Arachnida and not the insects they might appear to be at first glance. It is no wonder this small fearless creature is the stuff of myth and legend.  In some cultures, it brings luck and can ward off evil.  While for some the appearance of the scorpion calls to mind treachery or evil, most have a more healthy respect for these pint-sized little fighters. In Egypt and Tibet, scorpion amulets are worn for protection.  Isis the Egyptian goddess had giant scorpions who acted as her guards.  The Greek hero giant Orion was done in during a fight with as scorpion.  He’s forever seen in the sky as the constellation Orion fleeing after a fatal sting.

In Christianity, the Israelites trampled scorpions and in Buddhist myth the despotic king was so scared of a dream vision of the small fearsome stingers he stopped making war on monks. In the zodiac, the sign of Scorpio resembles the scorpion strongly in image and temperament.  People born under the sign of Scorpio are credited with being sensitive and strongly emotional.  They are sensual, have a strong appetites, self-confidence and tendency to be a bit willful.  They’re also said to be imaginative and intuitive, loyal and devoted as well as dignified.

So, it’s no surprise that the scorpion tattoo can be dark or light, small and mighty, or large and in charge.  The strange appearance of these little beasts is one half spider and one half lobster and this along with their cocky attitude makes them interesting and endlessly fascinating subjects to look at and enjoy. Men and women both often make those this image for either a fearsome or exotically lovely tattoo.

Depending on the detail, a scorpion tattoo can go almost any place, but because the image is usually very detailed it’s most often drawn either with a very simple background or no background at all.  The stinger can be simply drawn or made to look very complex.  It can be depicted as if it’s playful twitching around or coiled to strike.

You can put a large scorpion tattoo on the chest, shoulders or back.  A playful looking scorpion can be poised on an ankle, wrist or even at the nape of the neck.  A feisty fire red scorpion tattoo looks good at the base of spine where it can show just above jeans.  The intensity or playfulness of the scorpion tattoo is entirely up to the wearer.  Look through an artist’s work for samples of scorpion tattoos to see if this is the person to work on your body art.

Where to go from here:

• Scorpion Tattoo Designs – Tribal Scorpion Tattoos