Carp climbing the falls

A red carp fighting up a waterfall. Legend says a carp that climbs the falls becomes a dragon, so in irezumi it means perseverance. Thigh or upper arm, 15 cm and up.

Yashima Gakutei, Red Carp Ascending a Waterfall, late 1820s. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929. Public domain.

Public domain. Any artist can tattoo it; ask them to draw it their way.