Scale tattoo ideas

469 photos and flash · 24% Japanese, 15% Realism · Upper arm most common

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Black linework flash of an Eastern-style dragon coiling through clouds, a design suited to a Japanese style back or sleeve tattoo.
Eastern dragon with clouds
Pastel-coloured Japanese-style dragon design winding around peony blossoms and leaves on a cream background, drawn as a flash piece.
Pastel dragon and peonies design
Blue pen sketch of an ornamental design with paisley leaves, a fish with scale detail, an open eye and flowers, shown without any body part.
Paisley, fish and eye design sketch
Realistic crocodile head tattoo with a glowing orange eye across the forearm, shown in green and brown tones against a dark background.
Crocodile head tattoo on a forearm
Green-toned flash design of a large eye whose iris becomes a scaled wave, with a hummingbird, a sailing ship and pale pink blossom on a beige background.
Eye with waves, hummingbird and blossom flash
Close-up of a Japanese style tattoo on a back and upper arm, showing a red and yellow serpent with a dark scaled head and orange eye among black and grey waves.
Japanese serpent and waves across back and arm
Neo-traditional colour tattoo of a woman in profile with closed eyes and a pearl headband, beside a horned pink creature, on the upper thigh.
Woman in profile with horned creature on thigh
Black blackwork-style ornamental tattoo of lace, scrollwork and scale-like patterns running from behind the ear down the nape of the neck.
Black ornamental lace tattoo on the nape of the neck
Black and grey dotwork tattoo of a bearded sea god holding a trident, with waves and a sea serpent, on the forearm.
Sea god with trident and serpent on forearm
Black and grey Japanese style tattoo of a koi fish on the upper arm and a dragon with flowers and waves across the shoulder and chest.
Black and grey koi and dragon shoulder piece
Close photo of a realistic shaded snake tattoo wrapping down a person's calf, with dark scales and pale markings.
Shaded snake coiled around a calf
Black ink tattoo of a temple with spires, an eye and stars above, and two open hands with water drops below, on a person's upper back.
Temple with hands and eye on a back
Black and grey pen drawing of a coiled Japanese-style dragon with a open mouth, horns, whiskers and claws, shown as a tattoo design with no body placement visible.
Coiled Japanese-style dragon design
Black and grey serpent tattoo with dotwork shading and frilled fins, coiling from the shoulder down the side of the ribs.
Large serpent coiling down the ribs
Colour tattoo of a golden koi fish swimming among pink flowers and teal water plants on an upper arm, in a Japanese-influenced neo-traditional style.
Koi fish and flowers on an upper arm
Colour tattoo on an upper arm showing a dark-haired girl with a mermaid tail, a banner reading I'M NOT PERKY, and a dark creature with a small pink figure below.
Gothic girl mermaid banner on upper arm
Traditional style tattoo of a reptile head with spiny ridges and clawed forelimbs on the back of a hand.
Reptile head on the back of a hand
Black and grey dragon with swirling vines tattooed on a woman's side and hip, worn with a black corset top and checkered skirt.
Dragon and vines on a side hip
Pencil sketch of a long-finned fish with flowing fins, a detailed eye and scale shading along the body, drawn as a tattoo design.
Long-finned fish design in pencil
Black line drawing of a mermaid with scaled tail beside a sailing ship and a large sea creature, a tattoo design sketch with no body part shown.
Mermaid and ship sea monster design
Colour tattoo of a mermaid holding a baby, with flowing hair, bubbles and a blue and purple scaled tail, on skin at the side of the torso.
Mermaid cradling a baby in colour
Black dotwork tattoo design of a symmetrical fan of overlapping shaped segments, drawn on a white background with no body placement shown.
Symmetrical dotwork fan design
Black and grey realism dragon tattoo with spread wings across a person's back, with the head turned to the right and mouth open.
Black and grey dragon across a back
Two side-by-side photos of a stippled dotwork fish scale pattern tattoo on skin, one with teal and purple tones and one in dark black ink.
Fish scale pattern tattoo in dotwork
Black and grey dragon tattoo running down the back of a person with a raised arm, in Japanese style, with a branch-like tattoo on the upper arm.
Black and grey dragon across a back
Colour traditional tattoo of a seahorse with teal scales, orange spots and a red and brown flower on the inner arm.
Traditional seahorse with a flower on the arm
Black and grey realistic tattoo of a crocodile head with open jaws and visible teeth on the forearm.
Crocodile head on forearm
Black and grey dotwork tattoo of balance scales with a geometric diamond and leaf motif on the upper back.
Balance scales with geometric diamond on upper back
Black ink flash sheet of tattoo designs including a feather, antlers, mushrooms, a cleaver, an ear, an eye, a bird skull, balance scales with a brain, and a severed arm, drawn in dotwork and fine
Flash sheet of antlers, mushrooms and balance scales
Black and grey koi fish drawing in a Japanese style with orange fins and a red gill patch, beside the heading The Meaning Behind Koi Fish Tattoos.
Koi fish tattoo design with heading text
Pencil drawing of a mermaid with long hair seated on a ship's anchor whose top forms a heart, shown as a flash design.
Mermaid and heart anchor design
Two painted traditional flash designs of daggers on cream paper, one with a red rose at the guard and one with a scaled hilt, an eye and a ribbon banner.
Two traditional dagger designs on cream paper
Black ink pen drawing of a dinosaur head with a exposed skeletal skull and spine overgrown with thin tendrils, shaded with fine stippled dots and textured scales.
Dinosaur skull with tendrils pen drawing
Colour tattoo of a blue and purple dragon with spread wings and a green coiled tail on the upper back.
Blue and purple dragon on upper back
Black and grey flash drawing of a Chinese-style dragon coiling on the left and a phoenix with spread wings on the right, with no body placement shown.
Dragon and phoenix tattoo design
Black and grey pencil drawing of a mermaid holding a baby on a shell, with a starry hair, pearl strands and scale detail, shown as a tattoo design.
Mermaid cradling a baby on a shell
Black and grey tattoo of a woman holding aloft a pair of scales, with the words Sins and Forgive on the pans, placed on the upper back.
Lady Justice with scales on upper back
Black and grey Japanese style dragon and phoenix tattoo covering the full back, with the dragon coiling over the right shoulder and the phoenix spreading its wings on the left.
Dragon and phoenix across a back
Black and white tribal design of a snake with its mouth open, showing fangs and a forked tongue, set against swirling blackwork flame shapes; drawn design with no body placement shown.
Tribal snake design
Small fine line black tattoo of the Libra scales zodiac symbol on the inner wrist, with succulents in a pot behind.
Libra scales symbol on the inner wrist
Japanese style koi fish with orange flowers and waves covering the upper arm and shoulder, shown in two side-by-side photos.
Koi fish and flowers on upper arm and shoulder
Traditional-style flash drawing of a green snake coiled around a cream banner that reads Tunnel Snakes Rule, set on a plain green background.
Green snake with Tunnel Snakes Rule banner
Colour Japanese sleeve tattoo on an upper arm and shoulder, with orange flames, a pink flower, a purple bloom and green scales.
Japanese flames and flowers on an upper arm sleeve
Black and grey ouroboros snake tattoo with shaded dotwork scales, wrapping around the elbow on a pale arm.
Ouroboros snake wrapped around an elbow
Black ink ornamental tattoo of a peacock with paisley scrollwork across the shoulder and upper arm.
Paisley peacock design on a shoulder
Close photograph of a thigh tattoo of overlapping blue and green fish scales, shaded from teal to green, on a person lying on a white bed.
Teal fish scale pattern on a thigh
Blackwork hand tattoos showing a spider, scales, a crescent moon and a chain across the backs and fingers of both hands, with white painted nails.
Hand tattoos with spider and crescent moon
Realistic full-colour tattoo of a green-eyed reptile with scales and teeth on a lower leg, photographed in a studio.
Green-eyed reptile tattoo on a calf