A lot of the meaning behind traditional sailor flash is derived from superstition. To be sure, having a pig or rooster tattooed seems rather strange and random. But there is a method to maddness.
When a sailor was headed off to face the challenges of the sea, he would often get a tattoo to serve as a protective talisman. The pig and the rooster are just one of many examples of such precautionary marks. A pig on the top of one foot and a rooster on the other is intended to keep a sailor from drowning. The theory behind this has to do with the cages roosters and pigs were kept in on a boat; during a shipwreck their lightweight wooden frames became flotation devices giving the animals a safe ride to shore. Because pigs and roosters cannot swim, when sailors discovered that Fate had miraculously given the animals safety at sea, the sailors thought having the image of the rooster and pig would ensure their safety as well. Traditionally, the rooster is tattooed on top of the right foot and a pig on top of the left.
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