TATTOO-MARKS.

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CHAPTER XXXII.

MEDICAL EVIDENCE OF IDENTITY FROM COLORED CICATRICES OR TATTOO-MARKS.-MODE AND DATE OF PRODUCTION.-DURABILITY OF THESE MARKS.-THEIR ALLEGED SPONTANEOUS DISAPPEARANCE.-CASES OF IDENTITY FROM TATTOOING.-SIMULATED MARKS.— TATTOO-MARKS ON THE DEAD.-MEDICAL RESPONSIBILITY.

THE subject of tattooing has been noticed by medical jurists. Several trials have occurred of late years in France and Germany, which show the great importance of this subject in cases of contested personal identity. The Tichborne case (see pp. 338, 347), which occupied our law-courts for nearly two years, involved some issues of importance in relation to identity from cicatrices and the marks of tattooing. The presence of tattooed or colored marks on the skin of a person, verified by a competent observer, may become the strongest possible proof of identity, and their proved absence, if not accounted for or explained, may furnish the most convincing evidence of non-identity. An escaped convict may allege that he never was tattooed. There may be no colored marks on his skin, but a medical expert may be able to demonstrate that there have been such marks, and that traces of them still exist. A man who is found to be tattooed may, in order to escape punishment, pass himself off as another person, also tattooed. In this case medical evidence must be derived from a comparison of the color, form, and situation of the marks in the two. A tattooed man may claim an estate, and adduce the tattoo marks as a proof of his identity. It would be difficult for an impostor setting up a false claim to simulate marks of this kind. The operation would require time and an accurate imitation of the color and design, as well as of the part of the body selected. Members of the family would be able to say whether they were or were not such marks as those which had existed on their missing relative. There may be satisfactory proof that the missing person was tattooed, while an impostor may allege that he had not been tattooed. The fact, however, may be that at some former period of his life a man had undergone this operation, and, to prevent a discovery of his identity, he had removed the marks by cautery or other means. As the presence of tattoo-marks, and their correspondence in situation, color, and design with those on a missing person, would furnish the strongest possible evidence of identity, so their absence in a given case, unless clearly explained, must be considered as the best proof of non-identity.

Colored Cicatrices. Mode and Date of Production.-These marks arise from small punctured wounds made into the true skin with three or four sharp needles closely bound together. The needles are dipped in coloring matter at each time that the punctures are made. When the substance of the cutis is penetrated, as it ought to be in order to leave a permanent mark, there is, in a few hours, much swelling of the skin, with general inflammation. The colors commonly employed in tattooing are charcoal (gunpowder), China-ink, vermilion, and indigo. Other vegetable coloring matters of a fugitive kind are sometimes used. China-ink and charcoal, although black, produce designs on a white skin which have a bluish tint. The coloring matter thus deposited mechanically in these minute punctured wounds, after the first attack of inflammation has passed off, remains permanently encysted in the substance of the cutis or true

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DURABILITY OF THE MARKS.

skin and in the cellular membrane below it. It has been there found after death. According to Berchon, the local symptoms of irritation and inflammation last about a fortnight. At the end of the first month the lines of color appear wider than they will be ultimately. About the sixth week, the cuticle begins to scale off; and at the end of about two months, or a somewhat longer period, the skin acquires its normal condition. The designs in vermilion are at this early time much more intense than those in China-ink. When the local symptoms have subsided, the tattoo-marks are fixed, and it is impossible to assign a date to them.

Durability of the Marks. Alleged Spontaneous Disappearance.-In imperfect cases of tattooing, when soluble and fugitive colors are used, and the surface of the cutis only is penetrated, the marks may disappear or be removed by artificial means. Not so when the coloring matter is carried completely into the substance of the cutis or true skin. It there forms an intimate combination with the fibrous structure of the skin, and remains permanently fixed. Rayer has shown by the maceration of tattooed skin that the cuticle may be removed, and it is colorless, as in ordinary skin. This, therefore, proves that the coloring matter is firmly im bedded in the cutis and cellular tissue below it. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1855, t. 1, p. 194.) A maceration of the skin in water for two months did not affect the color of the tattoo-marks, and Tardieu found that no solvent could remove the coloring matter without at the same time destroying the texture of the skin. Tattoo-marks are not removed, because the coloring matter is insoluble and cannot permeate the roots of the vessels. Silver marks are equally indelible when deposited from taking nitrate of silver internally. Finely-divided substances, such as mercury, may penetrate; also finely-divided charcoal, taken into the intestines, has been found in the mesenteric veins. In 1874, there was a case in Guy's Hospital that well illustrated the durability of these marks. The man, æt. 50, had been a sailor, and while in the China seas from 1842 to 1847 he was tattooed at different times. There were numerous designs on both arms and the front of the chest, some of them artistically representing flowers and leaves, a flower-pot, and human figures. There were only two colors, blue-black and red, the former done with China-ink, the latter with vermilion. The operation had been performed by an English sailor. Three needles were used-these, dipped into the color, were introduced deeply into the skin sideways, or in a valvular form, and the ink mixed with water was then well rubbed over. The vermilion was rubbed in as a powder. Some blood flowed, and after a few days the parts cicatrized, the scabs came away, and the man suffered no inconvenience. The marks were deeply imbedded in the cutis; some were deeper in tint and blacker than others, this result depending on the strength of the China-ink used. The colors had undergone no change up to 1874, although one of them at the back of the hand, representing a flower-vase with flowers, had been exposed to light and to frequent contact with water and other liquids, including naphtha, but it had made no difference in its appearance. The vermilion had also retained its color. It is a remarkable coincidence that on his left arm were the capital letters "R. C. T.," but these did not correspond to the initials of the name of the patient. The marks were unchanged after, at the lowest estimate, twenty-six years.

In most anatomical museums, preparations of tattooed skin may be seen. In Guy's Hospital Museum there are many. The designs have been produced with gunpowder, and some small portions with vermilion. In one of them, which has been preserved in spirit for fifty years, the marks on the skin of the leg represent an animal like a goat; they are of a bluish

ALLEGED DISAPPEARANCE OF TATTOO-MARKS.

343 black color. In the part from which the cuticle has been removed the color appears much more intense. There is nothing to indicate that this preparation has undergone the slightest change of color during its long maceration in spirit. This and the other preparations also show that no color is removed by removing the cuticle; on the contrary, the color becomes brighter and more intense by contrast with the white surface of the cutis. Another preparation of the skin of the arm represents in blueblack (carbon) and red (vermilion) the Crucifixion, with the date-Nantes, 1808. In this also the cuticle has been removed in part, with the effect of bringing out the colors more strongly. Eighty-three years have passed since these marks were produced, but neither while living nor in undergoing maceration in water and spirits after death, is there any appearance of change in the depth of color or in the outlines of the design. In a third, the skin was taken from the arm of a sailor who died in Guy's Hospital in 1857. The designs represent the arms of England, Adam and Eve, the tree of life, and the serpent. It has been noticed with regard to this preparation that the red or vermilion color has become less marked during the years that it has been in the museum. Another preparation of the skin from over the scapula has simply a large letter "D," the brand of a deserter. This was removed from a dead body in 1860. A fifth, of the date of about twenty-two years, represents, in a very perfect manner, a ship in full sail, with the figure of a woman. This portion of skin was taken from the body of a sailor. These facts show how durable the carbonaceous colors are when the substance has once penetrated the cutis. No amount of maceration appears in any way to affect or alter them.

A survey or accidentally punctured the skin of the back of his hands with a sharp steel pen charged with China-ink. A bluish-black spot was formed after the healing of the wound; this was quite visible and unchanged after six years, and it would no doubt continue for life. A near relative of the author was tattooed with China-ink on the inside of the arm. The designs, which were of a bluish color, remained unchanged up to his death, i.e. for twenty-eight years. It has been rather hastily assumed that in a certain percentage of cases, tattoo-marks spontaneously disappear in the course of time. Thus Hutin examined 506 cases of tattooing. Relying upon the statements made by soldiers, sailors, convicts, and others, his conclusion was that in 47 the marks were completely obliterated after a period of from twenty-eight to sixty years; in 117 the marks were partially obliterated after a period of from ten to sixty-four years; but in 342 the marks were quite distinct after a space of from four to sixty-five years. With the exception of two cases of tattooing in vermilion which disappeared after thirty years, Tardieu found that the disappearance of tattoo-marks did not take place until after thirty to forty years, and of the only two tattooings with China-ink which were obliterated, one disappeared after forty-five and the other only after sixty years.

These and similar facts show that in a few cases these marks may fade or become less visible, but this change requires a period of ten years at the least. The fading of the marks most probably arises, not from a removal of the coloring matter by the absorbents, but from the fact that in some cases the tattooing has been superficially performed on a thin skin. If the absorbents can remove from the tattoo-marks such insoluble colors as carbon and vermilion, it would scarcely require a period of from ten to twenty-eight years for their removal, and on this theory it would be impossible to explain why tattoo-marks remain permanent in any case. subject has been considered by Horteloup. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1870, t. 2, p. 453, and 1872, t. 1, p. 423.) It is said that the vermilion has been seen

The

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REMOVAL OF TATTOO-MARKS BY ART.

in substance in the neighboring absorbent glands, but it does not appear that mercury has ever been detected in these glands (Casper), the crucial test of its presence.

The nature of the coloring material appears to have some influence on the durability of the tattoo-marks. Thus Hutin found that out of 78 persons who had been tattooed with vermilion alone, the tattoo-marks had disappeared in eleven, and that out of 104 tattooed with black pigment, such as carbon, China-ink, etc., not one had become obliterated. This permanency of the black pigment has also been noticed by other observers.

The general conclusion from these observations is that tattoo-marks once properly made in the cutis are practically indelible, but that when the operation is imperfectly performed the marks may, in the course of many years, become lighter and disappear. This is observed more commonly with red coloring matter than with the black or carbonaceous colors. As accurate information can seldom be obtained respecting the tattooing in early life, it may be inferred in a contested case in which the marks are proved to have disappeared, that the tattooing was imperfectly performed. This point, however, admits of refutation when it can be proved that the marks are still visible on the arm of another, tattooed at the same time, by the same person, and with similar materials.

Removal of Tattoo-marks by Art.—Many absurd statements have been made by convicts respecting the removal of tattoo-marks from their skin. The only methods by which such marks admit of removal are by excision of the cutis, or the application of the actual cautery or escharoties to destroy the skin. In such cases cicatrices remain, which, under a proper examination, may lead to detection. A case occurred to Tardieu in which the fact of obliteration was the main question for solution. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1855, t. 1, p. 201.) A man named Aubert was charged with having committed a robbery in 1843. His defence was that he was at that date confined in a certain prison under the assumed name of Solignon. On searching the prison-register it was found that a man named Solignon was there confined at the date assigned, and the description of the prisoner showed that he was tattooed on both arms-on the left there were two hearts, a dog, and other emblems; on the right a man, a woman, a dog, and two hearts. On examining the prisoner Aubert, no marks of tattooing were seen upon his arms, although he affirmed that he had been tattooed by a friend in 1840, and again in 1846, with a blue vegetable ink, but that he had some months previously removed the marks by a chemical process. He also described the marks: those on the right arm representing the bust of a woman and the letters "J S," and on the left a tomb, with foliage, etc. In 1846, a hunting scene had been added, but this was the faintest of all. By close examination of the skin with a lens in a strong light, Tardieu was able to detect faint white marks like cicatrices representing the outline of a tomb, with two hearts; and the marks indicative of two letters were also detected on the skin of the other arm by the same means. By these observations, the non-identity of the accused Aubert with the former prisoner Solignon was clearly proved. Both were tattooed, but the tattoo-designs were quite different, and under less skilful hands than those of Tardieu, Aubert might have escaped the punishment which he merited.

The prisoner Aubert communicated to Tardieu the plan which he had adopted for removing the tattoo-marks. He first applied an ointment of strong acetic acid, then a weak solution of potash, and afterwards hydrochloric acid. The skin which had been removed by these caustics was

TATTOO-MARKS ON THE DEAD.

345

gradually reproduced; but, although the coloring material was removed, linear cicatrices were left in the skin in every part to which the tattooingneedles had been applied. Tardieu subsequently tried this process on some tattoo-marks, and found that the coloring matter might be thus removed, but that traces indicative of the original designs were still left in the skin. Simple friction of the skin will sometimes suffice to bring out obliterated tattoo-marks. An escaped convict was on trial before a French court, and the question turned upon his identity with a prisoner known to have been tattooed. There was no appearance of colored marks upon his arm, and the question submitted to Leroy was whether the man had ever been tattooed. Leroy applied strong friction to the skin of the arm. This had the effect of bringing out cicatrices as white lines with a slight bluish tint. By this means the word "Sophie" was plainly legible in white marks on the reddened skin. This fixed the identity of the convict. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1870, t. 2, p. 460.)

As perfect tattooing cannot take place without deeply wounding the cutis and causing a cicatrix, we must not trust to the absence of color only when an opinion is required whether the person has or has not been tattooed. These observations equally apply to the destruction of the marks by fire. Horteloup examined the arm of a man, æt. 42, who at the age of 18 had been tattooed with China-ink. At the age of 30 a bar of iron, at a white heat, accidentally dropped on the tattooed portion of his arm. Twelve years after this accident Horteloup found a white cicatrix on the arm which had obliterated part of the design (a ship). When the obliterated portion was minutely examined with a lens, faint white lines were seen which filled up and completed the figure of a ship. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1870, t. 2, p. 459.) Bois de Loury met with an instance which proves that it is very difficult to eradicate the tattoo-marks without leaving distinct cicatrices of them. In this case a man had a number of initials of names spread over the skin of his chest and arms, and in many parts he had obliterated the letters by a red-hot iron applied to the skin,—but in every instance there was a well-defined cicatrix, and it was still possible to make out traces of the letters. (Ann. d'Hyg., 1872, t. 1, p. 423.)

Tattoo-marks on the Dead.-When we are required to examine a dead body for marks of tattooing, great caution is required if no colored marks are apparent on the skin. Putrefaction, unless very far advanced, does not interfere with their appearance. Tardieu states that, in examining the partially decomposed body of a man who had been a carpenter, the tattoo-marks on his arm clearly represented the instruments of his trade. When the question is whether the marks have been on the arm and subsequently removed, there will be some difficulty. An examination of the skin with a lens in a strong light may show the presence of lines corresponding to cicatrices; but the evidence derivable from friction of the skin is here lost. Horteloup recommends the examination of the neighboring absorbent glands for the coloring matter; but if the marks are of many years' standing, coloring matter is not likely to be found in them. In this respect a case which occurred to Casper is eminently instructive. In 1849, the body of a man, decapitated, was found in the neighborhood of Berlin. It was supposed to be that of one Gottleib Ebermann, who was missing. It was stated that the body of Ebermann could be identified by marks of cupping on the wrists, an operation performed on him eight or nine years. before his death, and also by tattoo-marks of a heart and the letters GE" on the left arm. On an examination of the body no marks of any kind could be perceived, and Ebermann's wife, who had been married to him two years, and his three sisters, affirmed that they had never seen