Dagger tattoos are considered a great way to make a statement. After all, this sharp and dangerous weapon can show your strength and bravery.

For several years, the dagger has been used by ancestors to defeat their enemies, and to keep their families fed and clothed through the hard times. With the many uses associated with daggers, it comes as no surprise why a lot of people chose to have this weapon immortalized in permanent bodily ink.

Heart-piercing Dagger

Perhaps the most famous dagger tattoo design is that going through a heart. Known as the piercing dagger, it usually represents a heartbreaking event - a forlorn love, a lost lover, a promise broken. While sad, this type of dagger tattoo is one of the best choices for those who wish to show how much they treasure the love that they have lost.

Dagger and Skull

Although most people view this as a very dark and negative tattoo design, a style bearing a dagger and a skull actually conveys positive meanings: bravery and protection. However, for some people, this can signify death. Despite the contradicting connotations associated with this dagger tattoo, it cannot be denied that it is one of the most popular styles out there.

Dagger and Rose

This tattoo design shows conflicting statements, since the rose is considered a beautiful element, while a dagger is thought of as the bringer of doom. While contradictory, this tattoo symbolizes the harsh reality of life. After all, life is not a bed of roses.

While the depiction is cruel, this tattoo on your body can actually motivate you to stand up and do your best. A dagger and rose tattoo can remind you of enduring hardships in order to enjoy beauty and success.

Dagger and Swallow

A popular style common in sailors, the dagger and swallow tattoo represents wealth, good luck and a safe passage. After all, the sea is very unpredictable. Even if the sailor is well-trained, or even if he is on a ship decked with sophisticated equipment, there is no telling when danger might arise. With this tattoo, a sailor will somehow feel protected as he gears for a safe trip home.

Dagger and Serpents

This tattoo is popular with many men, as it is associated with the virile Roman god Mercury. Somehow, it is associated with medicine because it is similar to the Caduceus, a totem respected by doctors and other health professionals.

Dagger Through a Cherry

While uncommon, a tattoo depicting a dagger through a cherry is considered very symbolic, especially to the Chinese people. In China, this design represents immortality and eternal life. If you want to show permanence through your ink, then you should consider this design (even if you are not Chinese.)