Snakes & Hearts

Because of the incongruity between lunar and solar calendars (and thanks to the whims of the 12 year Chinese horoscope cycle) Valentine’s Day has ended up in the middle of Ferrebeekeeper’s Snake Week.  At first I thought that this was a problem–since there were no snake theme valentines anywhere to be found online.  I did not want to break out the magic markers and glitter to create my own valentine to serpents because it has been a busy week (and what would I do with a bunch of snake valentines? What if someone saw a grown-up making such things?).  Fortunately I found that there is a medium where snakes and hearts frequently intermingle.  Even better many of the designs are extremely gothic and spiky and scary.

From tattoosbycarson.com

Like evil leprechaun tattoos, snake/heart body art is very common.  In fact I had some trouble finding catfish tattoos and the internet even ran short of evil leprechaun ink but I had no trouble finding snake/heart tattoos!  Apparently an immense number of people have snake tattoos of all sorts.  I wonder why serpents are so universally appealing as permanent body art?  Do people choose snakes for tattoos because the legless reptiles are ancient symbols of knowledge, wisdom, and fertility, or is wearing a snake an announcement of edginess, moral ambiguity, and toughness?  The snake inside the heart seems like it has a double meaning: not only is it an obvious metaphor for corrupted or dangerous love but it provides an outright fertility image (especially since the traditional cardioid-shaped valentine heart look less like an actual heart and more like a shapely asp).

Wait, is that even a snake?

 

Tattoo by Chris Hatch

From “The Dungeon Inc.”

 

 

OK, this one seems to be religious and not fertility-themed at all.

Alright, I sneaked in a couple of snake & flower tattoos because I thought they were pretty

 

Snake and peonies?

Whatever the meaning these snake/heart tattoos are extremely impressive.  Thanks to the brave souls who wear them.  Also a very happy valentine’s day to all my readers:  I could hiss you all…er kiss you all!