Russian Prison Tattoos: More Than Just Ink
Tattoos in Soviet and later Russian prisons are not merely decorative or gang-related like in the West. Instead, they were used to mark a prisoner's rank in the informal prison hierarchy — a form of visual identity that revealed which "caste" the person belonged to.
Tools and Materials in Prison Tattooing
The most valued pigment was Chinese ink, but it was rarely available. Inmates often used ballpoint pen ink or a mixture of soot, sugar, and urine.
As tools, prisoners used matchsticks with sewing needles tied to them. When those weren’t available, they improvised with staples from notebooks or books, sharpened on the concrete floor. More experienced artists used medical needles or even modified syringes.
Most tattoos were not self-made — inmates paid experienced prison artists. The process began by outlining the design, followed by ink application. Some specialists worked directly without sketches.
A later method involved stencil printing: the design was pierced into cardboard, pressed against the skin, and tapped, after which pigment was rubbed into the fresh wounds.
The procedure was painful and risky. Hours later, the skin would swell, redden, and sometimes fever would follow. If infection was avoided, the healing took days or weeks. But often, diseases were transmitted — from STDs to blood poisoning. In severe cases, prisoners lost limbs or even died.
Modern Techniques in the Zone
Over time, tattooing became more technical. Inmates began using electric razors and sewing-machine–style tools. Disinfection was done with alcohol or cologne. Chinese ink became the standard, often smuggled in by prison staff for a fee.
Today, tattoo machines used inside prisons can be just like those on the outside — especially in so-called "black zones", where inmates run the internal order and have access to forbidden items. Of course, tattoos no longer carry the same widespread demand or social weight as they did thirty years ago and earlier, but some designs can still cause serious trouble for their owners even today.