Lasers are typically used to remove tattoos from the skin with mixed results. These tight beams of light can also reveal the ink that once decorated 1,200-year-old pieces of mummified skin. Using a newly developed laser technique,

Using a cutting-edge technique called laser-stimulated fluorescence (LSF), researchers uncovered details that had been obscured for centuries by time and decay. The tattoos’ lines, some as fine as 0.1 millimeters, are surprisingly narrower than those made by modern tattoo needles.

With a tool often used in the study of dinosaur fossils, scientists uncovered new details in ornate tattoos on the skin of members of the Chancay culture of Peru.

For more than 5,000 years, humans have adorned themselves with tattoos. In a new study, researchers used lasers to uncover highly intricate designs of ancient tattoos on mummies from Peru. The preserved skin of the mummies and the black tattoo ink used show a stark contrast — revealing fine details in tattoos dating to around

These days, more than 30 percent of Americans sport tattoos—but there’s nothing new about our fascination with body art. As tattoos take over contemporary culture, scientists are looking to the past and uncovering the secrets of centuries-old ink.