The growing association of skulls with roses can be seen in fashion, art, certain cultures and especially in tattoos. How can a symbol of death be so often associated with such a beautiful flower? We’re going to explore all this together today. 🔥THE MOST POPULAR PRODUCTS🔥
1) Popularity of the Death’s Head and the Rose
Walking down the street, you can see many skulls with roses on tattoo signs, rock clothing or even in simple home decor stores.
In Europe, this trend has become increasingly popular with the arrival of ’60s biker gangs such as Hell’s Angels or Bandidos from the USA. But that’s not all!
This style of skull can be seen in contemporary art with artists such as Damien Hirst or Philippe Pasquat, in tattooing with Zombie Boy, and in punk rock music. Even fashion has its fair share of items in our online store.
You’ve probably noticed a lot of skull tattoos with roses, especially when they’re closely or remotely linked to Mexican culture, with a particular focus on the Day of the Dead.
Why is this? The skull and the rose have two very opposing meanings, but they come together on certain points. It’s thanks to many philosophies and ways of thinking that their popularity has exploded. We’ll look at the meaning of each of these symbols before we look at their association, because indeed, without understanding this, it’s easy to get lost quickly.
2) Meaning of the Death’s Head
Throughout history, many different skull and crossbones have been observed, each with its own particular meaning. However, they all refer to an image that’s easy to guess: fear, death and intimidation.
Among pirates, they were often present on ship’s flags, hidden until another ship arrived ready to be boarded and plundered. They were mainly used for defensive purposes, and even today, seeing a pirate flag on a ship doesn’t make you want to go near it.
For the Vikings, the skull represented strength. All the attributes sought by a warrior could be found in a skull, such as bravery, combat and power. It was common for them to collect them as war trophies.
For the Mexicans, the Feast of the Dead is a tradition not to be missed. In a more joyful vein, skulls and other skull and crossbones are given pride of place. This is why they are often accompanied by flowers. We’ll be devoting an entire chapter to this, but we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves.
In modern society, the skull and crossbones evolve with the times. Today, we retain the philosophy of the past. This is strongly linked to life after death, wealth or mythologies about the gods of death. This is due to all the art and works we have discovered that have influenced the philosophy of 21st-century man.
In short, skulls can symbolize the ability to overcome difficult challenges, even triumphing over death. They protect the wearer and can symbolize power and strength. They can also represent the transition from an old, painful life to a change with something new.
3) Meaning of the Rose
The meaning of the rose can vary according to its color and leaves much to the imagination. In some cultures, the hue of a rose is very important for not offending or, on the contrary, expressing love.
The red rose: you’ve already heard of it, it’s the number one Valentine’s Day gift. It embodies passion and intense love.
The pink rose: it symbolizes tenderness and gentleness towards the person to whom it is given. Like its red sister, it evokes love, but from a more lasting and sincere perspective.
The white rose: represents purity and innocence. It is also increasingly popular as a gift, symbolizing secret love.
The black rose: the opposite of the white rose, it evokes regret and disappointment. For many, it’s a sad color, but in our online store, we think it goes perfectly with the world of the skull and crossbones.
Blue rose: this color represents the unattainable, the attainment or arrival of an event that will never happen. It is often used to express optimism about a situation or a person.
The flower’s thorns can imply that love comes with sacrifice and that there can be pain, just like the pain that love can cause. Roses bring peace and can honor our loved ones. They can be a sign of devotion, friendship or respect.
4) The Death’s Head with the Rose
And what happens when the two are combined? Well, it’s up to the wearer to decide, because as we saw earlier, a skull and crossbones with a rose can take on many different meanings.
If we see a tattooed biker sporting a skull with a rose, we can easily guess that it represents power (which may be linked to his gang), accompanied by love if the rose is red, a shade much appreciated by bikers.
Another example is that of a gothic-style person who might choose to have a skull tattoo representing death and sadness, accompanied by a black rose to reinforce the whole.
For someone from modern society, presenting these two extremes in a tattoo or clothing depicting a skull and crossbones with a rose can be a representation of life after death, or even a symbol close to the Yin and Yang you already know: with life (love and passion) always comes death (fear and decay), and vice versa.
Although these days, many people also wear the skull and crossbones for aesthetic reasons alone! Indeed, it’s an opportunity to showcase two styles that clash but work so well together with a unique color scheme and a design that speaks to everyone, offensive or otherwise.
5) Mexico’s Festival of the Dead
As mentioned above, our Mexican friends deserve a paragraph entirely dedicated to the symbolism of the skull and crossbones with a rose. Indeed, associating the flower with the skull is a real culture over there. It happens on the Feast of the Dead, a celebration that is meant to be joyous, just like all the other festivities.
How do you combine a symbol of death for many with another, much more joyful representation?
In Mexico, the passage to the afterlife is an honor that the population celebrates with its dead in November, accompanied by the famous Calaveras (you can find an article entirely devoted to Mexican skulls on our online store), which are skulls adorned with roses of all shapes and colors.
These skulls are used to embellish offerings to the gods, in particular the Catrina, the Mexican goddess of death. Very often, roses of all colors are found on skulls called Calaveras.
6) Skull and Crossbones Tattoos with Rose
The combination of skull and rose is most often seen in the tattoos that many people proudly display. It’s beautiful, versatile, offensive without being too extreme and, above all, carries a strong meaning. It’s resurrection after a painful event, not fearing death, or love for El Dia de Los Muertos in Mexico. 🔥THE MOST POPULAR PRODUCTS🔥
