Ten of the best tattoos in literature

At the Guardian, John Mullan named ten of the best tattoos in literature.

One novel on his list:

Moby-Dick by Herman Melville

Ishmael, the narrator, finds himself sharing a bed at the whalers' inn with a Polynesian harpooneer whose face and body are covered with tattoos. These are the work of a "seer of his island" who has "written out on his body a complete theory of the heavens and the earth". Unfortunately, it is illegible to everyone, including Queequeg himself.

Read about the other nine tattoos on Mullan's list.

Moby-Dick also appears among Susan Cheever's five best books about obsession, Christopher Buckley's best books, Jane Yolen's five most important books, Chris Dodd's best books, Augusten Burroughs' five most important books, Norman Mailer's top ten works of literature, David Wroblewski's five most important books, Russell Banks' five most important books, and Philip Hoare's top ten books about whales.

--Marshal Zeringue