Calligraphy tattoo ideas

108 photos and flash · 70% Lettering, 10% Japanese · Back most common

What will it cost? Try the tattoo cost calculator
Teal script lettering in a French quote runs down the back, beside a sheer lace garment, on a tattoo placed along the spine.
Script quote running down a bare back
Black ink line drawing of an ornamental capital letter C with loops and crossed strokes on its left side, shown as a tattoo design on white.
Ornamental letter C with looped strokes
Black ink flash sheet of ornate calligraphic lettering designs on a beige background, including the words Joy, Love, Peace and Love One Another, with no body placement shown.
Calligraphic lettering flash sheet
Close-up of a fine black Arabic script lettering tattoo on pale skin, with the body area not clearly visible in the crop.
Arabic script lettering in fine black ink
Black ink calligraphy reading go live in flowing script across a pale background, shown as a lettering design rather than on skin.
Go live script lettering design
Flash design of a large black calligraphic letter entwined with green leaves, sprigs and a pale green rosebud on a white background, with no body placement shown.
Botanical calligraphic letter with leaves and rose
Black ink script lettering reading go live on a plain off-white background, shown as a lettering design with no body placement visible.
Go live script lettering design
Black flowing script calligraphy reading "it is well" on a white background, drawn as a lettering design in a lettering style.
"It is well" script lettering design
Black lettering design of the word bastarda in a pointed calligraphic script on a white background, with no body part shown.
Bastarda lettering design
Close photograph of a small black calligraphic script tattoo on the inside of a woman's foot, worn with black pointed heels and cropped denim.
Fine calligraphic script on the foot
Sheet of black script lettering samples spelling Alis volat propriis in several calligraphic styles, shown on a plain white background with no body placement.
Script lettering samples in several fonts
Black and grey realism tattoo across a man's upper back showing the word Amendment in flowing script, two engraved handguns and a quotation beneath, viewed from behind.
Amendment lettering and two handguns on back
Back of a woman with a red plum blossom branch and a vertical column of characters tattooed over the upper right back, with red petals falling down towards the spine.
Plum blossom branch on a upper back
Black stylised calligraphic design resembling Arabic script with three diamonds and a vertical stroke, shown as a flash drawing on a plain light grey background.
Stylised calligraphic letterforms with diamonds
Black ink drawing of a heart outline with the word love in flowing cursive script, shown as a tattoo design on a plain background.
Love script inside a heart outline
Bold black brush-style Devanagari-style script lettering on a plain white background, shown as a standalone design with no skin visible.
Black Devanagari-style script lettering
Black abstract calligraphic tattoo on the side of an ankle, with a black canvas sneaker and white laces beside it.
Abstract calligraphic mark on an ankle
Black fine line calligraphic script tattoo running diagonally along the side of a person's ribs, against pale skin and a coral top.
Script tattoo running along the ribs
Black and grey ink wash tattoo of a rearing horse with a Chinese character and red seal stamps on the outer thigh.
Ink wash horse with seal stamps on thigh
Black ink drawing on white paper of an abstract tattoo design made of curling swirls and flourishes, with no body placement shown.
Black ink swirl flourish design
Colour tattoo of a red daruma doll with a scowling face and gold characters, framed by grey Japanese-style waves on the skin.
Daruma doll with grey waves
Black script tattoo of the quote Si vis pacem, para bellum on the inner upper arm, with the arm flexed and a hand with red nails pointing at it.
Latin and English quote on upper arm
Small black tattoo of a stylised Ganesha in bold calligraphic linework on warm brown skin.
Ganesha tattoo in bold black linework
Black line drawing of a tattoo design made of looping calligraphic strokes, a thin hairline stroke and a curled spiral at the base, on a white background.
Looped flourish and spiral design
Japanese style flash drawing of a green and red dragon coiling over black and grey waves, with a small cartoon figure in a yellow robe beside it.
Green dragon flash with wave background
Flash-style drawing of a leaping brown fox with a teal wash swirl, next to a bold black kanji character meaning fox, on a white background.
Leaping fox beside a kanji character
Black ink script lettering reading hallelujah with a long flowing tail, drawn on a plain white background.
Hallelujah in script lettering
Black flowing script lettering reading À toi, pour toujours on a plain white background, a lettering design suited to a fine script tattoo.
French script quote lettering design
Black ink script lettering reading "it is well" with flowing calligraphic strokes on a pale textured background, shown as a tattoo design without a body placement.
Script lettering reading it is well
Pale fine line Arabic script tattoo on the back of a person's neck, photographed from behind with hair tied up.
Arabic script tattoo on the nape of the neck
Flash sheet of 29 hand-drawn East Asian characters in black brush lettering, each labelled in English with words such as Courage, Heart and Honour.
Single-character word flash sheet
Black ink flash sheet of ornate script letter A designs, several combined with heart shapes and flowing flourishes, on a white background.
Decorative script letter A designs with hearts
Realism tattoo of an orange koi and a black koi on the side of a ribcage, with a short line of Chinese characters beside them.
Orange and black koi on the ribs
Full-colour Japanese style flash design of a green spotted lion dog beside a pink peony, set among black and grey waves and swirling clouds.
Peony and lion dog back piece design
Matching black ink symbol tattoos on the tops of two bare feet near the ankles, with small script beside the left one.
Matching symbol tattoos on two feet
Small solid black calligraphic brush-stroke tattoo on the forearm near the wrist, shown against a dark background with a raised fist above it.
Small black brush-stroke tattoo on the wrist
Black line drawings of eighteen angular rune-style symbols arranged in rows, each with a printed English label such as Love, Strength and Clairvoyant Sight.
Chart of labelled rune symbols
Black linework design of angular script arranged in a ring on a white background, suited to a lettering tattoo with no body placement shown.
Circular script inscription design
Black and grey flash design of a stylised phoenix in flight beside flowing calligraphic lettering on a cracked cream background.
Phoenix with flowing calligraphic script
A bold black brush-style Chinese character on a white background, shown as a standalone tattoo design with no body part visible.
Bold black Chinese character
Black script lettering arranged in the shape of a cross on a white background, a lettering design with no body placement shown.
Cross-shaped script lettering design
Close-up of a black script tattoo reading "We're all mad here" in flowing lettering on the inner forearm, with a beaded bracelet at the wrist.
"We're all mad here" script on a forearm
Flash sheet of black brush-style kanji characters, each with a small red English translation printed beneath it.
Kanji character flash sheet with translations
Black lettering-style tattoo forming a rabbit shape on the side of a lower leg near the ankle, with a bare foot visible at left.
Rabbit made from characters on a lower leg
Black ink script lettering flash sheet with flourished phrases, scroll borders and a small ornament, shown on white with no body placement.
Script lettering flash sheet
Two black and white pen drawings of flourished script lettering, one reading Fearless and one reading Écriture Manuscrite, with a marker pen beside the second design.
Fearless and Écriture Manuscrite script lettering
Black script lettering design on a white background, with Arabic calligraphy above the English words "If it's meant to be, It will be."
Arabic and English quote lettering design
Fine line black tattoo of a small flower on a stem with leaves and Arabic script beside it, placed on the ankle and foot.
Flower stem and Arabic script on an ankle