Piercings and tattoos have been done for millennia. In fact, the oldest European mummified remains – Ötzi, found in the Ötztal Alps between Austria and Italy in 1991, dated at around 3,300BCE – had over 61 tattoos and piercings.

Piercings can be done for aesthetic, superstitious, ritual, symbolic or religious reasons, or perhaps even just to hold a certain piece of jewellery. Since the Middle Ages, and perhaps as early as Ancient Greece, sailors have superstitiously believed that an ear piercing improves eyesight. Their earrings, worn to signify safe passages and momentous achievements, would also pay for a Christian burial if washed up on shore.

For Hindu women of childbearing age, it is customary to have the left nostril pierced due to an ayurvedic association of the area with fertility and the reproductive system, as well as honouring Parvathi, the goddess of marriage. A pierced lip is a status symbol among the Haida, whilst a pierced and stretched lip for the Mursi women of Ethiopia is a rite of passage and indicative of cattle price due at the time of their marriage according to plate diameter. The motivations for piercings can go far deeper than just aesthetics, then.

The word ‘tattoo’ comes from the Polynesian tatau that has variable meanings depending on the island, although perhaps the most appropriate definition is from Tahiti, where it means to pierce ink into the skin. The word was popularised after Thomas Cook returned to England, but the art of tattooing has been practiced in different areas for millennia with varying symbolisms. The Maori gain their moko, or face tattoos, as a sign of lineage, social position or status. In Thailand, the yantra tattoo is supposed to ward off evil and bring luck.

Some tattoos also have a darker side to their history, markings of belonging in a punishable sense: in Roman times slaves sometimes had ‘stop me – I’m a runaway’ tattooed on their forehead, whilst soldiers had tattoos as markers to prevent desertion, and those trapped in Auschwitz were tattooed with identification numbers. Interestingly, Waffen SS members also had their blood type tattooed on their arm – allowing for Nazi identification and punishment at trials after the war. In the USA, tattoos were originally explored by the upper classes in the nineteenth century, but the invention of the electric tattoo machine meant that they lost their status symbol and gained popularity amongst members of the forces during the Civil War.

Whether it be Cara Delevingne’s lion finger tattoo, David Beckham’s notorious sleeves, Naomi Campbell’s and Kate Moss’ iconic belly button piercings, or even the studded ears of many of the population, body modification is an accepted part of England’s mainstream culture. Historically, though, this has not been the case. Any piercings other than lobe have been frowned upon in the past, as have tattoos. In our society, going under the needle was previously reserved for those on the outskirts, such as sailors, ex-cons, and travellers, and thus tattoos were linked with the negative attributes of these members of society. The punk movement of the 1970s is when piercings and tattoos really took off in England: piercing moved out of the home and into the newly prolific tattoo shops.

The popularity of piercings has oscillated throughout history. Between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries, ear piercings became more common in men than women, because the fashionable hairstyles for the latter covered the ears. In the fourteenth century, nipple piercings were all the rage in European courts due to the grand neckline popularised by Isabella of Bavaria, the contemporary Queen of France. Nowadays, piercings may be seen as a sign of rebellion in our society (my mother wanted me to wait until I was sixteen to get my ears pierced – in the end I got them done at fifteen), conformity as the result of social spreading, or, especially with tattoos, as a memento of an important moment or event, from the ridiculous (like a holiday with friends) to the serious (the death of a loved one, perhaps).

“Both tattoos and piercings… break the barrier between the individual and the external, introducing artifice to the flesh”

Some people believe that piercings carry medicinal properties linked to acupuncture points (claims that daith piercings can be a successful migraine treatment, for example), and tattoos can have healing properties too: sufferers of traumatic abuse sometimes get tattoos as a cathartic reclamation of their pain, or to hide self-harming scars that they feel ready to move on from. ‘Titoos’ have gained popularity, either as a way to regain control over scars by masking them with elaborate designs, or to give the realistic impression of a nipple that was lost during a mastectomy.

Piercing fashions come and go, and attitudes towards body modifications differ between generations too. In 2012, the Osaka government in Japan sent out a survey to public servants asking for a declaration of tattoos. The Japanese Yakuza gangs are famous for their elaborate hand-poked tebori irezumi tattoos which signify success and self-control, however it was decided that these particular tattoos were inappropriate for members of the local workforce to display because they could be viewed as intimidating. Professional and personal preferences often conflict when it comes to body modifications – but is this necessary, or is it discrimination?

Many employers limit the number of earrings allowed to two in each ear, and ask for tattoos to be covered up. This could be viewed as discriminatory but, ultimately, if one chooses to enter employment, one must respect employers’ wishes. Just as uniforms are worn at school, the corporate company workplace is not about individuality, but rather getting the job done. Whilst ideally it wouldn’t matter how one presented oneself, in reality first impressions do count, and there is still an inherent stigma attached to those with body-sleeves and multiple facial piercings, whether this is right or not, as well as an expectation that corporate employees have a ‘clean-cut’ image.

Though companies and institutions should be questioned regarding their appearance controlling limitations, these opinions and norms are formed at a societal level. For change in the world of work to happen, there must first be a change of attitudes in the wider world. With the growing popularity of tattoos and piercings, they will likely become the norm for the next generation of workers. Perhaps past notions of professionalism will be replaced with a greater acceptance of active individualism that fashionable tattoos and piercings seem to signify.

The eminent anthropologist Levi-Strauss believed that the body in its natural form awaited the imprinting of culture. Tattoos and piercings can be seen as cooperating with culture through religious practice, ritual, or norm, but have also played a part in the seventies counterculture in our society. They symbolically manifest themselves according to intention and purpose – some are private mementoes on hidden parts of the body, others become a part of how a person is perceived by others, whilst others still carry medicinal or religious significance. Both involve the piercing of the skin, thus both break the barrier between the individual and the external, introducing artifice to the flesh.

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For some, tattoos remain a taboo, but for many, the idea that they can be removed if regretted means they are becoming more acceptable. Regardless of the reasons underlying them, body modifications, just like clothes and belongings, are a way of expressing individuality; but whether attitudes towards them change once again is completely unpredictable