Since they discovered the corpse of Ötzi in the Alps in 1991, the 5,000 years preserved in very good condition have been used for numerous investigations. From the beginning, the 61 tattoos he had on his skin were the ones that cared for him. Experts believed these tattoos were drawn with small incisions on the skin and rubbed the soot on the wounds.

But in a recent research, New Zealand tattooer Danny Riday tattooed himself using various cutting and puncture techniques and later studying healing processes to compare them with Ötzi's tattoos.

They conclude that 5,000 years ago, no cuts were used, but tattoos were performed with a needle or spike, using a technique similar to the current one.