Wood carving constitutes a large part of Maori art, with the traditional meeting places on the marae adorned with carved poles that relate the tribes ancestry and history.

Over time these master carvers translated their skills to the skin. Traditional Maori tattooing was actually achieved by carving the skin and flesh with a sharp stick and natural pigments were used to accentuate the designs carved into the skin. After the arrival of the Europeans, gunpowder was also used for pigment, and sticks were abandoned in favor of chisels!

Tattooing was tied closely to rank, and the higher the rank, the more the body was tattooed. In New Zealand, the face tattoo (ta moko) could only be worn by those of high rank, principally tribal chiefs. Maori women of rank had their chins and lips tattooed. The Maori chief Te Pehi Kupe said during a visit to England in 1826, "Europee man write with pen his name Te Pehi's is here," pointing to his tattooed face. The completion of the moko could take up to a year of painful and dangerous work.

The lower back through the buttocks and down to the knees were frequently tattooed as well in what is called puhoro. The shape of the tattoo on the buttocks was invariably a swirling pattern.

The colonizing British and Europeans brought with them Christian missionaries who considered tattooing "the devil's art". The missionaries successfully outlawed tatau and the art form almost died out. Fortunately the tattoos of the Maori at this time in New Zealand's early history were beautifully chronicled by the painter Charles F. Goldie. See some examples of Charles Goldie's paintings of New Zealand Maori with tattooed faces.

There has been a flourishing revival of traditional tattooing in New Zealand over the last 20 years.

Tattooing the body was also practiced by the aboriginal tribes of Scotland, the Picts, who tattooed large parts of their bodies. Both men and women fought the Romans side-by-side naked displaying their tattoos to intimidate the enemy.