Tattoos reveal secrets of man whose flayed skin was nailed to a board

tattooed skin

Tattoos have helped reveal details of a 19th-century man who had his skin preserved

Smith, M.J., Starkie, A., Slater, R. et al.

The unique flayed skin of an anonymous man has revealed unexpected details about his life. Analysis of the tattoos on his body reveals he was French, a seafarer, loved a woman named Flourine and may have died in prison.

The gruesome artefact is currently held in a private collection in London. It consists of most of the skin of the man’s torso and limbs, which was nailed to a wooden board. Somebody then added horse hair stuffing between …

source: newscientist.com