Chicago Daily Tribune

The Tattooed Man.

Vienna letter to the Cincinnati Commercial.

We see many curious sights, and hear many strange histories in the clinics here, and one of no small interest appeared at the clinic in skin diseases, a few days since—the "tattooed man," who made his first appearance here last winter but cannot fail to be a subject of interest, ever if seen or written of many times. He is a Grecian by birth, and, it appears, has led a wild, roving life from his early days. A few years since, while in Asia, he was taken prisoner by one of the Tartarian tribes, with two other comrades. During their imprisonment they were tattooed. This man subsequently made his escape, and has since become famous through this singular misfortune. He is indeed literally tattooed from head to foot, the pigment used in the process being blue and red in color, the blue predominating, and the work is most skillfully done, and artistic almost in its merit. The appearance is as if the man had on a pair of tights or fleshings, such as are worn by acrobats and trained gymnasts, only as if these were woven in most fantastic designs. The man is a most wonderful specimen of physical development and beauty, quite 6 feet high, and will weigh little less than 200 pounds, and his smooth skin covered with curious and multitudinous figures, presents a curious yet by no means ugly appearance. What is most remarkable is that the process was begun and finished in about three months, the operator working steadily eight hours at the work in every twenty-four, until the entire dermoid surface was completely covered, and the strangest and most unusual thing of it all was that there were no unpleasant consequences in this case, no dermatitis, no swelling of the glands, and no apparent ill effects whatever, while his two companions were most seriously affected, in one it causing death, and the other total blindness resulting. The tattooing is done in representation of animals, birds, reptiles, and also several figures of men and women, and all the spaces filled in with intricate arabesque designs. On the palms of the hands are tablets lined and script thereon inscribed, being the history of the man's imprisonment and punishment, and this has afforded many learned European philosophers much interesting study. On the back of the left hand is a most beautiful eagle with outstretched wings. The entire body is covered with the figures and arabesque designs large and small, completely and absolutely, and to the eye the whole presents a ruined appearance, yet to pass the hand over the surface it is perfectly smooth, and all the functions of the normal skin are preserved intact. The man is migratory in his habit and goes from city to city, and those with medical schools of celebrity are most attractive to him; so it is not impossible that our medical colleges may yet be favored with his presence, and truly it is a wonderful sight to see and most interesting to a medical student making a specialty of dermatology.