Being totally serious.
I was asked today if there was any way i would tan a skin for a biker/tattooist.
Yes - he is terminally ill and wants his whole tattooed back, tanned and framed.
I shuddered at the thought but didnt dismiss it outright.
I explained i had not done this before, (i dont know anyone who has),but knew some tatts were preserved somehow and would look into it both methods and legally.
I see in the archs the mention of this topic brings up discussions of nazi's but not much else.
Would anyone here be able to point me to a book/procedure/offer advice?
thanks sam.
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I think it was on Discovery channel, a father and son owned a bar, the son had his fathers back skin salvaged after he died with his father's previous approval, had it tanned and placed it in a display case on the wall of the bar to display the tattoos. It is not something that is done everyday. However, I would think that the family would have to do all the work of acquiring the legal paperwork if any, and the removal of the skin at the mortuary. You would to the tanning and maybe the display case only. You wouldn't go out and shoot the deer for the hunter, take it to the butcher shop for them and go pick up the cape when you needed it would you? Let the customer get a lawyer, line up a mortician, and you look for a good tanning method. I would think the customer needs to do the research to make this happen.
The problems we would have in the US may not be one you'll have. Here we'd have to get a notorize affadavit from the "donor". I'm sure there'd be hell to pay here with some judge having the final approval. The skin would have to be removed just like on any other animal. Remember, we're simply a hairless ape when you get down to the biology of things. From there, it would need to be fleshed and shaved, salted and simply tanned. Once it was tanned, stretch it over a frame much like you would canvas and let dry.
If the guy is serious, you need to charge accordingly. I wouldn't touch it for less than $1000 because if you charge less, you'll appeal to a certain sect of society who'll likely keep your name on file. The only way to either stop it or make it worth your time for that kind of notoriety is to charge exorbitantly.
You don't have to go back to the Nazi's to find this. America had it's own Dr. Mengele but he didn't have the education. Go to Google and type in "Ed Gein" and see what I mean.
because I agree with Geo here. LOL
There is no difference between human skin and other mammal skin. Afterall, we are mammals. The only thing to consider may be the tattoo itself. You do not want it to fade during the tanning process, so you should be doing some research on tans that would not affect the quality of the tattoo itself. This would be my only concern, besides the fact you are dealing with a human skin.
Like Geo said, charge accordingly. I don't know whether $1,000 would do it for me. There is all this legal jumbo and hoop jumping to consider, paperwork, public perception of this procedure, and of course the gross factor.
You need to think about long term. How will you feel one, five, ten years down the road knowing you tanned a human skin-- there is a difference! To me, performing any form of taxidermy on a human is taboo.
I share your perceptions and maybe phobia of such actions though the suggestion of this is very little than what undertakers go through every day as well Think about the caste system in America where undertakers work in a shadow world much like we do as taxidermists. If you've ever been around one for any length of time, you'll find they have a macabre sense of humor that psychologists call "laughing away the fear". Most of us shy away from funeral parlors because we imagine what might go on inside, but we really don't want to know.
I recall vividly as late as the 1950's when the dead were washed on a board in their own kitchens by the family, dressed in the Sunday finery, photographed and posed for the family to pass by. Quarters were often put on the eyes and strong perfumes were used to cover the stench after a day or two in the summer heat. In today's world that seems so far fetched it's unimaginable. Attitudes have changed a great deal in 50 years.
We're simply animal undertakers and taking that extra step Sam is confronting is not that big a leap in my opinion.
I know an undertaker and you are right about their sense of humor. But that leap Sam may take is not one I'm going to take, I'm a little afraid of the fall on the other side, if ya know what I mean. BP
printed for me to touch that job. I would not want to get involved for several reasons including liability if the job turned sour, plus I just would not do it...period!
First of all, I don't have any tattoos, but we see that organs are harvested from expired folk and passed along and that is considered a noble cause. Ted Williams had his head and body frozen for a future ball game. Skin is harvested from cadavers and used for burn victims to cover burns until new skin is grown. All kinds of body parts are used over again; I do not see any harm in a family wanting its last wish granted by having a back skin preserved. It may be morbid to some, but so is taxidermy to some people.
if the job turned sour, a replacement would be hard to find, You could go to Detroit Receiving hospital for a replacement, you would have to sew up some bullet holes though.
I was a pallbearer at the funeral of a long time friend and co-worker. While we were waiting for the family to arrive, the undertaker and I were talking, and I told him about this topic...he shuddered...now if the undertaker shudders, I darn sure wouldn't want any part of it!
Mr. T: I'm LMAO. In addition to being too shot up, them replacement capes from Detroit Receiving would probably be too dark!
dont have to worry about slippage. Ink holds up pretty good in a pickle, also. I think, if he is going to meet his Maker, the last thing he should worry about is his tats. Wear them with pride, but who cares about their legacy. Worldly vanities aint going to mean nothin to God.
Some people just don't have a sense of humor. My cousin was going through medical college and was working on his cadaver. The janitor was sitting at his desk eating Kentucky Fried Chicken and my cousin asked how he could possibly just sit there and eat. The guy said, "Two reasons. One: I'm hungry. And two, it ain't me you're working on." Guess that's how my customers must feel when they walk into my shop and I'm heating a ham sandwich while a road killed otter is lying on the table next to me.
id do it for free just to say i done it! lol
Thankyou for not sticking it to me ;-)
I feel totally confident in doing the job and i shall let the 'owner' do his legality research while i do my own tanning research. I've/he's got at least 6 months.
I dont really see any difference between this job and any other i get but thats me, (I did afterall, want to work in a morgue before taxidermy got a grip on me).
Yes i would want to have legal documents incase of a slip up too.
Thanks for the mature responses, again.
Good point regarding price and 'interesting' link George. (I'm not 'that' wierd...yet...lol.lol.)
I guess we wont hear any more harsh words about the plastination freak from Vienna. Are you reconsidering your stance on novelty mounts? I'm really taken back by some of the replies.
If your set on doing it Samantha get a confidentiality agreement. I would also charge a lot more (use some for the counseling your going to need lol).
Always have been. Just thought the guy looked like a Nazi death camp guard. "Novelty" mounts make animals pose in unnatural positions and I don't like the lack of respect for the animal. Don't know that I'd ever be enticed in doing it, but understand it. And I don't know why Sam is going to need counselling. No more than a med student working on a cadaver. It's not like she's skinning him alive or killing him just to harvest his skin. Sounds as if it's struck a discordant cord with you Andy, but I don't know that it's that much more different than some lady wanting me to "stuff" her cat so she could have it put into her casket with her when she died.
Tattoo artists practice on severed pigs feet sometimes. You may want to try having someone put a tattoo on a pig skin then tan it to see if the ink fades. Not sure if it will work on a dead pig seeing as how the tattoo will not heal. However, you can maybe buy a pig, have it tattooed, let it heal, kill it, tan it and see what happens, then send me 50lbs of sausage and bacon for this great idea!
LOL Mike.
I am sure those damn animal libbers would see me jailed if i did that!