A road crew in Dorset, England found a mass grave of Viking bodies that appear to have been slaughtered by Britons, as their heads, torsos and legs were buried in separate graves and no weapons, equipment or clothing were found. The bones showed signs of utter brutality being delivered upon the poor fellows, but more intriguing is the fact that the Vikings teeth had horizontal lines deliberately filed into them. Archaeologists feel that this was done in order to appear more fearsome in battle, and that the excruciating filing of the teeth must have been done by a master craftsman.

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Extreme body modification has taken an interesting turn in Japan. These lovely people above have had saline pumped into their foreheads for about two hours, a process that creates a rather, um, well… it makes a lump. And if you press your thumb into your forehead while the saline is pumping in, it makes a bagel, which is awesome? I don’t get it. There’s an interview with the intrepid Ryoichi “Keroppy” Maeda, who introduced the technique to Japan over at Vice Style. Lots more pics, but probably NSF-the needle-sensitive. Link

If you thought face tattoos were intense and are frightened of the guy who turned himself into The Lizard Man, then you are really going to be squeamish when it comes to the Scar Tattoos featured in this gallery. My favorite is the guy who got his dog tattooed on his arm. Link

Lip Stretching

(Image credit: Flickr user Rita Willaert)

Lip stretching is a body modification that goes back 10,000 years and had been practiced all over the world, from Siberia to South America, from the Middle East to Europe, although there is no evidence that the custom traveled from one area to another. The procedure survives only in Africa and among some Amazonian tribes in South America. The practice is seen among women in the Mursi and Surma tribes of Ethiopia. The lower lip is pierced and a peg is inserted, to be replaced with a larger peg as the skin stretches. A plate or labret is inserted when the piercing is large enough. Traditionally, this is done as a young woman prepares to marry, but is now a personal decision rather than an obligation.

Skull Binding

(Image credit: Wikipedia user Robrrb)

Skull binding has been practiced at various points in history in widespread parts of the world, with some evidence of Neanderthal skulls that had been shaped around 45,000 BCE in Iraq. The custom of head shaping has been most notable among skulls excavated in Peru, where the practice dates back 9,000 years. The skull can only be shaped during infancy. The bones eventually harden to the point that skull modification would only break the cranial bones. An infant’s skull would be wrapped with cloth (sometimes with wooden boards added) to restrict its expansion sideways, causing the head to grow long and tall instead. This practice was usually restricted to the wealthier classes. Reproductions of such skulls can be purchased online.

Scarification

Scarification is a traditional alternative to tattooing in Africa, as ink doesn’t stand out well on dark skin (link contains nudity). There are several purposes to the procedure: to decorate the body, to prove bravery and willingness to bear pain, and to signal allegiance to the tribe and family to which one belongs. The practice goes back at least several hundred years among widely scattered tribes. In some tribes, the process of scarification is part of a rite of passage into adulthood at puberty. See more pictures of scarification in Africa (contains nudity).

Neck Accentuation

(Image credit: Flickr user florathexplora)

The women of the Kayan Lahwi tribe of the mountainous region straddling Burma and Thailand undergo a body modification that causes their necks to appear extremely long. Starting at the age of five, brass coils are set around their necks. These are replaced with longer coils as the girl ages, until a woman is carrying around about ten pounds of brass. This process does not elongate the neck; rather, it reshapes the collar bone and presses the shoulders down, which creates the illusion of a long neck.

Tattoo

(Image credit: Joann Fletcher)

No one knows how old the practice of tattooing the skin is, but it is thought to go back at least 7,000 years in Japan. Egyptian mummies four thousand years old were discovered with skin tattoos. In Europe, the practice is quite old as well. Ötzi the Iceman, a well-preserved European frozen European who died 5300 years ago was tattooed with 57 dots and lines on his spine and legs, which may be related to the arthritis he suffered.

(Image credit: Flickr user The Life of Bryan)

The word tattoo comes from the Polynesian word tatu. Western explorers first encountered the custom in Tahiti in the 1700s. The traditional Maori moko facial tattoos were already a part of tribal culture when the Maori left Polynesia and settled in New Zealand over 700 years ago.

Circumcision

Circumcision is an ancient bodymod that goes back further than recorded history. Some scholars believe it began in eastern Africa, long before Abraham made it a ritual of faith. It may possibly have been used to dampen sexual desire and pleasure. The practice spread to Egypt and the Middle East over time. In males, circumcision entails the removal of the foreskin from the penis, which can affect sexual pleasure, but does not destroy it. However, some cultures also practice “female circumcision”, which is actually genital mutilation, as it involves removal of the clitoris. This is done to prevent any sexual pleasure, and therefore prevent a woman from straying from her husband. The practice can lead to lifelong pain, sexual dysfunction, problems in childbirth, infection, and even death.

Foot Binding

(Image by Flickr user Okinawa Soba)

Foot binding in China lasted for about a thousand years, until the 20th century when the practice was outlawed. The reason most often given is that small feet were sexually alluring. Why would crippled, deformed feet make a woman more attractive? The underlying reason is that a woman with bound feet is a status symbol, an indicator of wealth and social standing. Only a man of considerable means could afford to have a wife, concubine, or daughters who couldn’t work. Read more about foot binding in a previous Neatorama post.

(YouTube Link)

Not for the squeamish.  At first glance, it seems improbable and downright impossible, but inmates are actually attempting to stand out from the crowd by having ink injected into the whites of their eyes.  DamnCoolPics has a bit more information on the procedure:

Because the we had trouble getting the ink under the surface (and were able to “wash” it out of the small needle incisions), we tried the second procedure, on Josh using a 29ga needle and syringe, thinning down the ink very slightly with an antibiotic eyewash. Since the goal was simply to blanket the white of the eye in color, there wasn’t a need for fine detail. The first injection was shallow and appeared to dissipate on the surface, but the second injection was at the perfect level and formed a dark bubble of ink just over the sclera (in the third picture you can see some of the ink running back out of the injection hole).

Link.  (via Cynical-C)

ARLINGTON, Texas, May 11 (UPI) — A Texas body modification enthusiast said he broke a Guinness World Record by receiving 1,197 piercings in a single day.

Jeremy Stroud said Arlington body modification artist Tyson Turk spent about five hours May 2 inserting 800 needles into his back, 300 in his right arm, 50 in his leg and about 20 in his left arm, the Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram reported Monday.

Link via Double Plus Undead

Image by flickr user sean dreilinger used via Creative Commons license

Update 5/13/09 by Alex: if you can stand the loud music, here’s the video clip: Link [YouTube]