A kingdom of conscience, or nothing

from George V’s diary

The Dragon: Prince George met with a master tattooist (believed to be Karakusa Gonta) in Tokyo. In his personal diaries, George described the ink as a "large dragon in blue and red writhing all down the arm," a process that took roughly three hours. 

The Tiger: Later in the same trip, George visited Kyoto and received a tiger on his opposite arm to complete a symbolic representation of the East and the West. His brother Albert Victor chose a dancing crane instead.

King George V's first cousin and lookalike, Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, also had a large traditional Japanese dragon tattooed on his forearm. Nicholas received his during a state visit to Japan in 1891, a meticulous design with yellow horns and a red belly that required seven hours of work.

Nicholas described the experience in his diary:

April 16, Tuesday. I awoke to a wonderful day, and the shore was irresistibly inviting. The streets and houses of Nagasaki make an exceptionally pleasant impression: everything is spotlessly clean and tidy, and it is a pleasure to enter their homes. The Japanese people, both men and women, are so warm and welcoming. We returned to the frigate around five o'clock for tea. After dinner, I decided to have a dragon tattooed on my right arm. It took exactly seven hours—from 9 p.m. until 4 a.m. Once is quite enough of that sort of pleasure to cure one of any desire to repeat it! The dragon turned out splendidly, and my arm did not hurt at all.

Dragons were a popular subject among Japanese ink-painters and tattooists. Said to control thunder and rain, they were also a powerful symbol of the East, and often paired with a prowling tiger representing the West.

Evening dress.

ca. 1837-39

"Thanks, sunshine."

"Of course, Dean."