An ancient artefact unintentionally discovered by a Washington archaeologist is "of great significance"

A tattoo artifact ever discovered in western North America, according to a Washington State University archaeologist (WSU), revealed this week a 2,000-year-old tool, left in a box dusty store for about four decades.

Andrew Gillreath – Brown, 33, a doctoral student in anthropology at the WSU, came across a "pen-sized instrument" in Utah while he was inventorying all the artifacts of l & # 39; university. According to the WSU, researchers rely primarily on early works of art to better understand the role played by tattoos in Aboriginal cultures. This discovery is therefore of "great importance".

"There is little talk of tattooing among the prehistoric peoples of the Southwest, because there has never been direct evidence to prove it," said Gillreath – Brown in an online statement. "This tattooing tool provides us with information about the Southwest culture that we did not know before."

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Gillreath – Brown, along with seven of his colleagues, recently published an article detailing their rare find in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Archaeologists know that tattooing was prevalent in ancient times, especially for religious groups and the wealthy who used it as a status symbol. But it is hard to really understand how the ink was used, as it is not usually kept in mummies.

It is only recently that British experts have discovered the world's oldest figurative tattoos on two 5,000-year-old Egyptian mummies, including the oldest tattooed woman ever discovered. Their incredible discoveries were published in the Journal of Archaeological Science last March.

Until now, no tattoo signs have been observed on preserved human remains in the southwestern United States, the WSU said. That's what makes this discovery so exciting.

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"When I first came out of the museum box and realized what it could have been, I'm really excited," Gillreath – Brown said. "Staining the tattoo pigment residue on the tip was what immediately piqued my interest as a tattoo tool."

"The tool consists of a 2.5 cm skunkbush wood sumac handle connected at the end with split yucca leaves and holding two parallel cactus spines, stained with black at their end," the university said.

Gillreath – Brown then closely examined the tip of the 3-inch tool with the help of a microscope and even performed tattoo tests on a pig's skin "for good measure ".

He hopes this will help better understand the cultures of thousands of years.

"[It] is of great importance to understand how relationships managed by people and how their status may have been marked in the past at a time when population density was increasing in the Southwest, "added Gillreath-Brown.