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Stars' Most Daring Tattoos

Stars' Most Daring Tattoos

Check out the shocking ink on Britney Spears, Angelina Jolie and 11 other stars. By Serena Kappes with Devon Thomas

By People Staff

Updated August 02, 2005 04:00 PM

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BRITNEY SPEARS & KEVIN FEDERLINE

Credit: X17; Pacific Coast News(2); X17

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline got his-and-hers dice tattoos on their wrists (pink for her, blue for him) while on tour in Dublin, Ireland, in May 2004. It was a good-luck charm: A week later, on the plane back to the States, they got engaged.

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BRITNEY SPEARS

Credit: Anthony Harvey/EPA/Landov; TONY KYRIACOU /JULIAN MAKEY/REX USA;

The singer's gamble with Federline isn't her only body art: She has a Hebrew tattoo that refers to one of Kabbalah's 72 names of God on the back of her neck, a fairy on her lower back, a butterfly on her left foot and a Japanese flower tattoo that's "down there," says a friend.

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ANGELINA JOLIE

Credit: Retna; Albert Ferreira/startraksphoto (top inset); STR/AFP/Getty

Talk about suffering for your art: In 2003, a former monk in Bangkok used a 15-in. needle and a hammer on Angelina Jolie's left shoulder to inscribe five lines of ancient Thai Buddhist scripture meant to ward off bad luck. A year later, he etched a 12-in. tiger on her lower back, taking two hours to complete. Not quite as painful: the "Know Your Rights" tattoo on the nape of her neck.

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NICOLE RICHIE

Credit: Sara De Boer/Retna; TSUNI/GAMMA; Jonathan Friolo/IHP/Splash News

The Simple Life star likes to keep it simple when it comes to her ink. She just has a few tattoos, including a pair of delicate angel wings on her shoulder blades, the word "Virgin" on her right wrist and a garland on her neck.

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JESSE JAMES

Credit: Mark Mann/Retna; Rex USA

Sandra Bullock's new husband – and the host of the Discovery Channel's Monster Garage – uses his body as a canvas. "I'm covered in tattoos," he says of his almost 30 tats, including an octopus eating a crab on his right arm, a $100 bill on his back and the words "Pay Up Sucker" on his palm.

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LINDSAY LOHAN

Credit: Ramey

The "La Bella Vita" tattoo on Lindsay Lohan's lower back is a tribute to her grandfather, who died in 2004, says her publicist. At his funeral, the actress read a poem of the same name (it means "the beautiful life" in Italian), and six months ago she had the words emblazoned on her body at a New Orleans tattoo parlor while filming Just My Luck.

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DAVID BECKHAM

Credit: BAUER-GRIFFIN; Rex USA; Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty

David Beckham's sons – Brooklyn, 6; Romeo, 2; and Cruz, 5 months – and wife Victoria all have permanent spots on the soccer star. But sharing ink space are religious icons including a cherub, an angel and a winged cross. "He sees them as watching over his kids, protecting them," Beckham's tattoo artist Louis Malloy has said.

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CHARLIZE THERON

Credit: Retna; Lisa O'Connor/ZUMA; Jeff Vespa/WireImage; BEImages

Oscar winner Charlize Theron opts for sexy subtlety. She has a delicate flower on her right foot and a koi carp – the Japanese symbol of love – on the back of her right ankle. The latter was a mother-daughter effort: The actress and her mom got matching tattoos in 1991.

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JOHNNY DEPP

Credit: Jesse Grant/WireImage; KARWAI TANG/ALPHA/GLOBE; Alan Davidson/WireImage

"I jot down experiences that mean something to me – jot them down permanently," Johnny Depp told The New York Times about his more than 12 tattoos. Among them: son Jack's name on his right forearm, daughter Lily-Rose's name above his heart and a Native American profile (paying homage to his Cherokee heritage) on his right bicep.

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PINK

Credit: MATRIX/BAUER-GRIFFIN; Fame; Darla Khazei /Retna

Grammy-winning singer Pink is a tattoo aficionado, with an elaborate dragon on her thigh, an angel on her left shoulder and a host of others. But it’s the words "Sir Corky Moore," inscribed on her left forearm, that are particularly sentimental: They are a tribute to her dog, Corky, who died in 2003 at the age of 14.

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USHER

Credit: Frank Micelotta/Getty; Jason Nevader/WireImage

Multi-platinum singer Usher goes with the flow, even in his choice of body art. On his right leg is a break-dancer doing a handstand spin. And on the left? An intricate tribal design.

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KEITH URBAN

Credit: BAUER-GRIFFIN; REtna

Aussie singer Keith Urban (who's been spending time lately with fellow countrywoman Nicole Kidman) looks more rocker than country crooner with his tattoos. He has four of them: "Omnia vincit amor" ("Love conquers all" in Latin) on his right forearm, a thunderbird on his left forearm, the word "love" and an eagle. "They are little signposts along the way," he says.

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NICK LACHEY

Credit: Neal Preston/Retna

Nick Lachey (with wife Jessica Simpson) filled in the center of his sun tattoo: It used to show the name of his band, 98 Degrees, but they've since parted ways. Lachey is still tight with ex-bandmate and brother Drew, though; the two cemented their brotherly love with matching tribal armbands with an "L" in the center (for their last name).

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Stars' Most Daring Tattoos

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BRITNEY SPEARS & KEVIN FEDERLINE

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BRITNEY SPEARS

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ANGELINA JOLIE

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NICOLE RICHIE

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JESSE JAMES

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LINDSAY LOHAN

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DAVID BECKHAM

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CHARLIZE THERON

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JOHNNY DEPP

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PINK

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USHER

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KEITH URBAN

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NICK LACHEY

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