{"object":[{"sourceId":{"label":"Source ID","value":"2269"},"copyright":{"label":"Copyright","value":"The American Folk Art Museum believes this work to be in the public domain."},"creditline":{"label":"Credit Line","value":"Anonymous gift"},"endDate":{"label":"End Date","value":"1910"},"sortNumber":{"label":"Sort Number","value":"1995    29    1"},"invno":{"label":"Accession number","value":"1995.29.1"},"description":{"label":"Description","value":"35 pages in the book."},"medium":{"label":"Medium","value":"Ink on oiled cloth, with buckram binding"},"geographyPlaceregion":{"label":"Place/Region","value":""},"media":{"label":"Media","value":[{"mediaURL":"https://collection.folkartmuseum.org/internal/media/dispatcher/2609/full","mediaDepartment":"Object Photographs","mediaType":"Image","mediaId":"2609"},{"mediaURL":"https://collection.folkartmuseum.org/internal/media/dispatcher/4814/full","mediaDepartment":"Object Photographs","mediaType":"Image","mediaId":"4814"},{"mediaURL":"https://collection.folkartmuseum.org/internal/media/dispatcher/4815/full","mediaDepartment":"Object Photographs","mediaType":"Image","mediaId":"4815"}]},"title":{"label":"Title","value":"Tattoo Pattern Book"},"geographyCity":{"value":""},"textEntriesWebsitedisplaytext":{"value":"The practice of tattooing has evolved over thousands of years and has strong roots in maritime culture; marking the body with tattoos was thought to offer protection against drowning and dangers that lurked in the sea. This rare tattoo pattern book, small enough to fit into a pocket or ditty bag, consists of thirty-five waterproof pages and is typical of logbooks used by seamen to record ballast or tank readings and measurements; there is even a page of penciled measurements at the back. The artist signed the first page, but the name following the inscription \u201cDesigned by\u201d has faded\u2014it seems to read \u201cJ.S. Bombay.\u201dThere are a few surviving books like this one. A sailor most certainly drew the images, for tattoo artists were often sailors, and the portability of the sample book lent itself to the itinerant nature of a seaman\u2019s life. Designs on several pages have nautical themes, and others were inspired by religion, patriotism, and popular culture. One page has several anchor designs with dates ranging from 1873 to 1899, probably the artist\u2019s years of service. There is also a faint inscription dated 1910. One drawing, entitled \u201cSailor\u2019s Dream,\u201d depicts a sailor asleep in a hammock dreaming of embracing the beautiful girl pictured in the sail of his ship. A third drawing features a young seaman positioned in front of an American flag and leaning against a tombstone inscribed \u201cRemember the Maine\u201d; in the background the American battleship Maine is pictured before and after its destruction in the harbor off Havana, Cuba, on February 15, 1898. The Spanish were blamed for the sinking the ship and the consequent deaths of 260 American seamen, even though no one knew for certain who was responsible. \u201cRemember the Maine\u201d became a national rallying cry that helped to incite President William McKinley to declare war against Spain on April 25 of that year. Lee Kogan, \"Tattoo Pattern Book,\" in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 357."},"collections":{"label":"Collections","value":["Books","eMuseum - Collection Highlights"]},"geography":{"label":"Geography","value":""},"id":{"label":"Id","value":"153751"},"geographyState":{"value":"New York"},"geographyCountry":{"value":"United States"},"onview":{"label":"On View","value":"0"},"people":{"label":"Artist / Maker","value":{"displayOrder":"1","personRole":"Artist","personID":"103","content":"Artist unidentified"}},"classifications":{"label":"Classification(s)","value":"Books/Manuscripts/Information Artifacts"},"textEntries":{"label":"Text Entries","value":"The practice of tattooing has evolved over thousands of years and has strong roots in maritime culture; marking the body with tattoos was thought to offer protection against drowning and dangers that lurked in the sea. This rare tattoo pattern book, small enough to fit into a pocket or ditty bag, consists of thirty-five waterproof pages and is typical of logbooks used by seamen to record ballast or tank readings and measurements; there is even a page of penciled measurements at the back. The artist signed the first page, but the name following the inscription \u201cDesigned by\u201d has faded\u2014it seems to read \u201cJ.S. Bombay.\u201dThere are a few surviving books like this one. A sailor most certainly drew the images, for tattoo artists were often sailors, and the portability of the sample book lent itself to the itinerant nature of a seaman\u2019s life. Designs on several pages have nautical themes, and others were inspired by religion, patriotism, and popular culture. One page has several anchor designs with dates ranging from 1873 to 1899, probably the artist\u2019s years of service. There is also a faint inscription dated 1910. One drawing, entitled \u201cSailor\u2019s Dream,\u201d depicts a sailor asleep in a hammock dreaming of embracing the beautiful girl pictured in the sail of his ship. A third drawing features a young seaman positioned in front of an American flag and leaning against a tombstone inscribed \u201cRemember the Maine\u201d; in the background the American battleship Maine is pictured before and after its destruction in the harbor off Havana, Cuba, on February 15, 1898. The Spanish were blamed for the sinking the ship and the consequent deaths of 260 American seamen, even though no one knew for certain who was responsible. \u201cRemember the Maine\u201d became a national rallying cry that helped to incite President William McKinley to declare war against Spain on April 25 of that year. Lee Kogan, \"Tattoo Pattern Book,\" in Stacy C. Hollander, American Anthem: Masterworks from the American Folk Art Museum (New York: Harry N. Abrams in association with American Folk Art Museum, 2001), 357."},"beginDate":{"label":"Begin Date","value":"1873"},"displayDate":{"label":"Date","value":"1873\u20131910"},"exhibitions":{"label":"Exhibitions","value":[{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Wednesday, June 20, 2012 - Sunday, October 7, 2012","exhibitionEndISODate":"2012-10-07","exhibitionID":"151","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"2012-06-20","exhibitionBeginDate":"2012","exhibitionTitle":"COMPASS: Folk Art in Four Directions","exhibitionEndDate":"2012"},{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Tuesday, January 21, 2014 - Wednesday, April 23, 2014","exhibitionEndISODate":"2014-04-23","exhibitionID":"172","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"2014-01-21","exhibitionBeginDate":"2014","exhibitionTitle":"Folk Couture: Fashion and Folk Art","exhibitionEndDate":"2014"},{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Thursday, July 11, 2002 - Sunday, January 5, 2003","exhibitionEndISODate":"2003-01-26","exhibitionID":"73","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"2002-07-11","exhibitionBeginDate":"2002","exhibitionTitle":"American Anthem","exhibitionEndDate":"2003"},{"exhibitionDisplayDate":"Friday, March 15, 2019 - Sunday, July 28, 2019","exhibitionEndISODate":"2019-07-28","exhibitionID":"231","exhibitionISOBeginDate":"2019-03-15","exhibitionBeginDate":"2019","exhibitionTitle":"Made in New York City","exhibitionEndDate":"2019"}]},"dimensions":{"label":"Dimensions","value":"4 1/2 × 3 1/4 × 3/4\" (closed)"}}]}