Classic Tattoo Stencils

This is a staggering volume of thousands of examples of the celluloid acetate stencil, an essential tool in the history of tattooing. Mythical creatures, angels and devils, anchors and other nautical symbols, and more abound in stencil form, the classic tracing method that has only increased exponentially in popularity since the rough days of crude materials and callused hands.

Before Thermofax and numbing cream, tattooists had to hone their tracing skills perfectly—and clients had to…