This steamy GQ video got me thinking about Rihanna‘s tattoos. Did you know she has 18 of them? I had no idea! If you’ve never seen them all up close and personal, here’s your chance!
PS. Her regular tattoo parlour is Bang Bang Tattoos on 26 Clinton Street, in the Lower East Side in New York City.
Tattoo #1 : musical note on right her ankleTattoo #2 : Pisces sign behing her right earTattoo #3 : क्षमा सत्यं दमः शमः भयं चा भय च ।। Sanskrit on her hip
Tattoo #3 : क्षमा सत्यं दमः शमः भयं चा भय च ।। Sanskrit on her hip
Pronounced kṣamā satyaṃ damaḥ śamaḥ bhayaṃ cābhayam eva ca – these words from the Gita written in Devanagari mean “Forgiveness, Honesty, Suppression and Control.” (Unfortunately whoever did RiRi’s tattoo apparently made a few mistakes!)
Tattoo #4 : Star inside her left earTattoo #5 : الحرية في مسيح – written in Arabic on her rib cage
Pronounced Al-horriya fi maseeh – these words mean “the freedom in Messiah or freedom is God”
Tattoo #6 : Stars on her neck and backTattoo #7 : skull & bones wearing a pink bow on her left ankleTattoo #8 : “Love” on her left middle fingerTattoo #9 : “Shhh…” on her index fingerTattoo #10 : XI-IV-LXXXVI in roman numerals on her shoulder
Tattoo #8 : “Love” on her left middle fingerTattoo #9 : “Shhh…” on her index fingerTattoo #10 : XI-IV-LXXXVI in roman numerals on her shoulder
Tattoo #10 : XI-IV-LXXXVI in roman numerals on her shoulder
The date 4.11.1986 (April 11, 1986) is her best friend and assistant, Melissa Forde‘s birthday. Melissa got the same tattoo of Rhianna’s Birthday just after her.
Tattoo #11 : Maori-inspired geometric design
She got this one in New Zealand and explained, “It’s tribal. It represents strength and love. It’s their traditional way of tattooing. I always wanted one… but it hurt like hell!”
Tattoo #12 : Gun on her ribcage
Rihanna often wears a miniature gun pendant necklace, she had the weapon etched across her ribcage.
Tattoo #13 : “Never A Failure, Always A Lesson” (Mirrored) On Shoulder/Clavicle
This empowering message appears to be entirely for her own benefit because it’s been etched on back to front so she’ll be able to take read it in the mirror.
Tattoo #14 : Rebelle Fleur her neck
That’s French for “rebellious flower” but there’s some disagreement about whether it’s grammatically correct!
Tattoo #15: Thug Life (in white) on her knuckles
Thug Life was Tu Pac’s mantra. Rihanna tweeted that she got it in Tibetan this time.
Tattoo #16: red cross on her neckTattoo #17: Egyptian falcon on her right ankle
The Egyptian falcon is flying in the shape of a handgun. Rihanna explained on Twitter, ‘Falcon: a light that shines in the darkness! Never close their eyes during sleep.
Tattoo # 18: Goddess Isis under/between her breasts
Rihanna’s grandmother died last July after a long battle with cancer. She dedicated her new body art to GranGranDolly on Twitter. She is said to symbolize the eternal mother, friend to slaves, sinners and the helpless.
Wow. Kinda makes me want to get another one. Do you have a tattoo? Tell me about it in the comments below and don’t forget to tell me which one of Rihanna’s is your fave!
