A simple tribal eagle head tattoo at the back.Tribal tattoos, so immediately recognisable by their dramatically emphasised tracery, are becoming an increasingly popular choice amongst tattoo-lovers, and eagle tribal tattoos are placed with the top ranking designs.  Tribal tattoos used to be indicative of art work stemming from Oceania or Africa, but with their spreading popularity, these can now be found all over the Western World and account for around one third of all tattoo designs now being requested.

Originally their usage was common to tribes or clans, to help people identify other members, and they can still today signify fraternity around specific symbols, interests or cults, but they are also chosen for the dramatic statements they make.  Eagle tribal tattoos are strongly associated with American patriotism (the bald eagle being the national emblem of the USA) and are a great favourite amongst military servicemen.

Tribal tattoos, by their very nature, are meant to be permanent decorations and therefore great thought needs to be given before embarking on a design.  The internet nowadays abounds with tattoo galleries, all extolling the virtues of their wonderful designs, but when you look more closely, many of these designs are repeated over and over on different sites and what you see is not always what you get.

What may look impressive on your monitor, may not look so impressive on your skin.  The other disadvantage is that in opting for a design found online, you are foregoing the quest for uniqueness which may well be the reason for wanting a tattoo in the first place.  If you do not belong to a street gang or cult, walking out and seeing someone else with the same, or very similar design, might not give you the reaction you intended.

A man showing his large tribal eagle tattoo on his chest to photographer.

Browsing for your designs online, whether your quest is for eagle tribal tattoos or any other designs, is highly recommended.  It will help you to focus your ideas and make up your mind about what you like and dislike; what might work for you and what might not, but you should think of it as window-shopping only.  When you are shopping for an important purchase, you will rarely grab the first thing you see in the first shop window you look at; and you should therefore adopt the same approach when shopping for your tattoo design.  You can only find the best available, by eliminating the worst.  It is important as well not to merely look at designs.  The symbolism behind your chosen subject is fascinating and varied and could well influence the pose or other features of your design, making it more personal and reflective of the characteristics you want to portray, or the aspect of your own personality you want to present to others.

Patriotism eagle with anchor tattoo design on arm.

Nothing can beat sitting down with a reputable tattoo artist and discussing the merits of your chosen design and its suitability for your skin colouring.  He is, after all, the expert and will want to give the very best he can to his art work to satisfy his own sense of pride as well as his customer’s.  Take designs of several eagle tribal tattoos along with you and point out the best qualities from each and, if you are prepared to listen to his advice, you should be very pleased with your finished artwork.