Sydney Parkinson, Portrait of a Maori, 1769. Wash drawing, 151/2 x 11 5/8 in.

For the Maori, tattoos were signs that designated the mana, orspiritual power, of the person adorned by them. They were almostalways bilaterally symmetrical. In recent years, tattooing hasgrown in popularity among Americans, especially with youngergenerations--some 45 million Americans have tattoos, and nearly 40%of all people between 26 and 40 years of age. How is the tattoo inAmerican different from its original use in Maori culture? Why doyou think bilateral symmetry and facial tattooing is less pervasiveamong Americans Why is "tattoo regret" so prevalent--certainly noMaori would regret his or her tattoo?