George Burchett

George "Professor" Burchett (23 August 1872 – 3 April 1953) was an English tattoo artist known as the "King of Tattooists".

George Burchett
Born
George Burchett-Davis

23 August 1872
Brighton, East Sussex, England
Died3 April 1953 (age 80)
Morden, Surrey, England
Other namesKing of Tattooists
OccupationTattoo artist
Spouse(s)Edith Smith Walters

Early life

Burchett was born George Burchett-Davis on 23 August 1872 in the English seaside town of Brighton, East Sussex. He was expelled from school at age 12 for tattooing his classmates and joined the Royal Navy at age 13, developing his skills while travelling overseas as a deckhand on HMS Vincent. After absconding from the Navy, he returned to England.

Career

With studios on Mile End Road and at 72 Waterloo Road, London, Burchett became the first star tattooist and a favourite among the wealthy upper class and European royalty. Among his customers were King Alfonso XIII of Spain, King Frederick IX of Denmark, and performer Horace "The Great Omi" Ridler. Though it was reputed that he tattooed the "Sailor King" George V of the United Kingdom, there is no reliable evidence to attest to this actually being the case.

He constantly designed new tattoos from his worldwide travel, incorporating African, Japanese and Southeast Asian motifs into his work. In the 1930s, he developed cosmetic tattooing with such techniques as permanently darkening eyebrows.

He continued tattooing until he died suddenly on Good Friday in 1953 at the age of 80. His apparent autobiography, Memoirs of a Tattooist, edited by Peter Leighton (a pseudonym of writer Edward Spiro/EH Cookridge), was published in 1958 by Oldbourne Book Company and included photographs illustrating some of his tattoo designs. However, recent research has revealed that the book was not actually a compilation of Burchett's own notes, but a confection cribbed quickly from newspaper articles shortly after his death.[1]

Select bibliography
  • Michelle D. Miranda (2015). Forensic Analysis of Tattoos and Tattoo Inks. CRC Press. ISBN 1-498-7364-32..
  • Gay, Kathlyn; Whittington, Christine (2002). Body Marks: Tattooing, Piercing, and Scarification. Twenty-First Century Books. ISBN 0-761-3235-2X..
  • Margo DeMello (2007). Encyclopedia of Body Adornment. ABC-CLIO. p. 105. ISBN 0-313-3369-54.
  • Reiter, Jon (2012). King of Tattooists: The Life and Work of George Burchett. Solid State Publishing Company. ISBN 0-578-1092-47.

References
  1. Lodder, Matt. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography Burchett, George (1872–1953). Oxford University Press https://www.oxforddnb.com/view/10.1093/ref:odnb/9780198614128.001.0001/odnb-9780198614128-e-100995. Retrieved November 13, 2020. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  • "George Burchett". BMEzine. Archived from the original on 18 August 2012.
  • Reiter, Jon (2012). King of Tattooists: The Life and Work of George Burchett. Solid State Publishing Company. ISBN 0-578-1092-47.


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