Britney Spears tattoos include a Kabbalah symbol on the back of the neck, a kanji tattoo on her hip, a pair of dice on her wrist, a kanji tattoo and butterfly on her foot, a cross on her other hip and arguably her most famous tattoo, a fairy in the small of her back.

The Kabbalah tattoo on the back of her neck was supposed to mean “new life”, but somehow the characters were tattooed out of order rendering it meaningless – needless to say, Britney has since had this tattoo removed with laser surgery.

Apparently the kanji design on her hip was supposed to signify “mysterious” but apparently reads “strange”, which is probably more apt. This is the second tattoo that has been incorrect, which really does make you wonder what is going on in her mind. You would think that you would thoroughly research a design before you actually got to the stage of putting ink to your skin.

Probably the best known and nicest one is Britney Spears fairy tattoo located in the small of her back. This small attractive fairy image appears to have been taken from an illustration in a children’s book. There is also a small pair of rather unattractive pinkish/red dice on the inside of one wrist.

The tattoo on Britney’s foot is the kanji symbol for “freedom”, together with a vine tattoo and a butterfly added to her toe. Rumour has it that this combination of tattoos was supposed to symbolize her being as “free as a butterfly” – but given her life at the time one has to wonder, maybe she was just yearning for a freer life?

“My body is a journal in a way. It’s like what sailors used to do, where every tattoo meant something, a specific time in your life when you make a mark on yourself, whether you do it yourself with a knife or with a professional tattoo artist.” Johnny Depp.

Many of Depp’s tattoos were inked by New York tattooist Jonathan Shaw who acted as a tattoo artist in Clint Eastwood’s movie titled Tightrope.

He now has at least thirteen known tattoos, with most of the best known ones listed below:-

Wino Forever - located on his right upper arm this banner tattoo originally read “Winona Forever” in honor of his relationship with actress Winona Ryder, however, as is often the case, the tattoos lasted longer than the relationship. After the breakup of the relationship the tattoo was laser edited to read “Wino Forever”.

Cherokee Indian chief - located below the Wino Forever tattoo, this tattoo reflects his ancestral heritage, being a tribute to his Cherokee great-great-grandmother.

Brave Symbol – located on the inside of his right arm and is from his movie The Brave.

The Swallow or Flying Bird – located on his right forearm, this tattoo is taken from the Pirates of the Carribbean movie. Often a swallow was the first sign to sailors that they were nearing land and indicated a “safe return home” for the sailor. The swallow was oriented to face Depp and his son’s name jack was added below the bird.

Inverted Triangle – located on the upper left arm, it is believed to be a universal symbol of the feminine and an expression of love.

Betty Sue – located below the Triangle, this is a memorial tattoo, comprising a heart with a ribbon banner through it, bearing the name of his mother. This is the style of tattoo often favoured by servicemen in the second world war. The design has been further embellished with some tribal markings.

Silence Exile Cunning – located on Johhny’s, this poignant message has a deeper meaning , it is a quote from the James Joyce’s book “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man”. At five pages of the end of the book, we can find this quote, from the main character Stephen:

“I will tell you what I will do and what I will not do. I will not serve that in which I no longer believe, whether it call itself my home, my fatherland, or my church: and I will try to express myself in some mode of life or art as freely as I can and as wholly as I can, using for my defense the only arms I allow myself to use – silence, exile, and cunning”

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“I like the feeling that those two boys [Brooklyn and Romeo] are with me even when I’m away from home. And not just in my heart. I had their names tattooed on my back after each one was born. There’s a guardian angel there, too, looking after them both. My dad had three tattoos of his own and so the idea has been with me since I was a kid ….

“The idea came to me much later, a little while after Brooklyn was born. I was talking to Mel B and her then-husband, Jimmy Gulzar, and the subject of tattoos came up. I ended up going to this Dutch guy who’d done all of Jimmy’s. I’d finally realised what I wanted a tattoo to represent. Mine are all about the people in my life, my wife and sons, who I want with me always. When you see me, you see the tattoos. You see an expression of how I feel about Victoria and the boys. They’re part of me.”

Many of David Beckham’s tattoos were drawn by artist Louis Molloy at his Middleton Tattoo Studio, one of the most highly regarded and successful Tattoo Studios in the U.K., including the name of Beckham’s third son Cruz and three cherubs on the inside of his biceps to represent each of his children and the angel back piece. Check his site for more great examples of his work.

He asked the tattoo artist to etch the Knight Templar on his arm as he “feels the knights were the best equipped, trained, and disciplined fighting units of the Crusades, just as he has always tried to be as a footballer representing his team of knights”.

The main tattoo on the forearm is a giant angel whose wings meet with the other tattoos. The angel also holds a flame in her hand. Also the words “Let them hate me as long as they fear me” which is a quote by the Roman emperor Tiberius.

Translation of Beckham’s Chinese Kanji tattoo reads: “Life and death have determined appointments, riches and honor are determined by God depend upon heaven.”

Her choice of tattoos reflect her personality, exotic, sensual with a small hint of danger. Angelina has been known to have a tattoo for the man she loves, but as soon as he exits stage left, she has no hesitation in having it lasered off or covered over.

Angelina has turned the tribal dragon into one of the most popular tattoos for women worldwide.

Here’s an overview with pictures of Angelina Jolie’s tattoos:

The Gothic letter tattoo between Angelina’s shoulder blades that says “Know Your Rights”, is taken from the title of a song from one of her favourite bands, The Clash and also reflects on The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The tattoo on her left shoulder blade was, just like the tiger tattoo, done by tattoo artist Noo (aka Sompong) Kanhphaiin in a hotel in Pathum Thani, 16 miles north of Bangkok. It is a Buddhist Pali incantation written in Khmer script, the language of Cambodia. It is there to protect her and her adopted Cambodian son Maddox from bad luck.

Here’s a rough translation:

May your enemies run far away from you.
If you acquire riches, may they remain yours always.
Your beauty will be that of Apsara.
Wherever you may go, many will attend, serve and protect you, surrounding you on all sides.

This Arabic script tattoo on Angelina Jolie’s right arm means “Strength of Will”. It covers up the abstract lines tattoo she had done together with her ex Billy Bob Thornton.

This tattoo on Jolie’s left arm are the words of Tennessee Williams:

“A prayer for the wild at heart, kept in cages.“

Angelina Jolie had this tattoo done in the presence of her mother.

These numbers are the geographical coordinates (longitudes and latitudes) from the locations where her children first entered her life.

1. N11° 33′ 00″ E104° 51′ 00″ : the place in Cambodia where Angelina Jolie’s eldest son Maddox was born.
2. N09° 02′ 00″ E038° 45′ 00″ : the place in Ethiopia were her daughter Zahara was born.
3. S22° 40′ 26″ E014° 31′ 40″ : the place in Namibia (Swakopmund) where Angelina gave birth to her biological daughter with Brad Pitt, Shiloh (Hebrew for “the peaceful one”), was born.
4. N10° 46′ 00″ E106° 41′ 40″ : the place in Vietnam where Angelina’s son Pax Thien was born.

The coordinates tattoo covers the place where the dragon tattoo and name of her ex husband Billy Bob used to be before they got lasered off. You can still see the dragon a bit.

This 12-inch long, 8-inch wide Bengal tiger tattoo on her lower back is Angelina Jolie’s latest. It was done in Bangkok on July 8, 2004, during a 2 hour session by tattoo artist Sompong Kanhphai who also blessed it by chanting an ancient hymn. Sompong also did her Khmer tattoo. She had the tiger tattoo done to celebrate her Cambodian citizenship.

The tiger tattoo was done in the traditional Thai tattoo style with a manual needle. The tiger’s tail covers her blue window tattoo.