The critically acclaimed story of Princess Mononoke is an epic masterpiece, an animation like no other, created by Hayao Miyazaki — an award-winning director. It’s also an incredibly popular choice for tattoo art. The story, centered around San (a.k.a Princess Mononoke) and the noble Prince Ashitaka, was released in Japan in 1997 and subsequently in the U.S. in 1999. Ever since its release, the movie has created a huge, ever-growing fan base the world over. Princess Mononoke’s striking warrior look has inspired thousands of tattooists and enthusiasts. The top trending Princess Mononoke tattoo designs that I’m sharing in this article are the perfect testaments to that. The source is mentioned beneath each design, knowing you’ll fall in love with each design and would want to explore more work by each of the talented artists directly.
As the crux to the storyline, Prince Ashitaka journeys to the West in his quest to undo the deadly curse that is inflicted on him by Nago (the boar god). Nago is turned into a demon by Lady Eboshi, and the curse inflicted upon him manifests in his arm as a worm of evil. During his journey, the curse worsens. He ends up in a war with the folks in Irontown, which is mastered by Lady Eboshi. He also stumbles into a fight with all the creatures inhabiting the great forest, led by god Moro (the great white wolf) and the enigmatic warrior San.
Studio Ghibli’s classic creation, Princess Mononoke, a.k.a San or ‘Wolf Girl,’ is a character that strongly resembles a wolf. She’s a beautiful young princess of the Wolf Gods, raised by the Wolf God — Moro. She’s fierce, bold, and highly determined to deter humans from destroying the forest, forest god, and the animal spirits of her forest home. Her striking look is attributed to her red face paint, wolf fur cape, and mask. Hence, if you’re looking for vibrant, colorful tattoos, then Princess Mononoke tattoos are a perfect choice.
Princes Mononoke Tattoos
Princess Mononoke (‘San’) Tattoos
This darker Studio Ghibli movie showcases how a war between man and nature leads to neither side being the winner. Overall, as you’ll note from the latest trending Princess Mononoke tattoo designs below, the film is stunning, and so is the gorgeous Princess featured in it.
The above Princess Mononoke tattoo engraved on the thigh, it’s noteworthy how the most striking Princess known to film can be such a wonderful tattoo. As a result, both the inked character and the body part look striking.
Source: @wolf.drawn via Instagram
The artist has done an immaculate piece here. It’s a simplistic Princess Mononoke tattoo on the thigh, with an impeccable combination of fine linework and watercolor style tattooing. San’s notable face paint is the highlight here.
This forearm piece in sketch style is flawless. The beauty of the Princess is apparent in all its vibrancy here.
A lot is going on in this beautiful piece. And, all of it looks stunning. The red roses, the strikingly beautiful Princess, her famous red mask, and the overall red and black theme are all just genius artwork! Oh, and let’s not forget the cute Kodama, which I’ll come to later.
Princess Mononoke, in all her glory, is represented by virtue of this artwork of perfection on the arm.
This realistic piece looks perfect on the forearm. I love the shiny touches that further bring out the 3D effect.
This tattoo features the most striking Princess known to film, tattooed with fine dot work. How much more uniqueness can you expect?
Looking for a colorful, glitzy princess tattoo? Here’s the ideal pick!
This simplistic tattoo won’t fool you. It covers all aspects by the iconic fur coat, the pretty, red face paint, and the dagger. Furthermore, the mask in the Princess’s hand further distinguishes this piece for the fans.
In this arm piece, I love the blue petals that are garland around the princess’ fur coat. It helps accentuate her beauty and dedication towards protecting her forest and the creatures within it.
This black and grey sleeve tattoo is realistic yet bold. All that pain and time to get inked with such a dense piece is worth it in the end if you get such stunning results.
This neo-traditional tattoo design wouldn’t have looked this excellent if it weren’t for the inclusion of the color purple. It’s a great tattoo design for the forearm.
The man’s forearm is looking amazing with this Princess Mononoke tattoo in black and red. Those big, sparkly eyes of he Princess are to die for.
Princess Mononoke Mask Tattoos
Princess Mononoke, to the humans in the film, is an emissary. As said earlier, she represents the forest gods and spirits. The significance of her ancient mask is the representation of her protective role within her forest home. This next set of awesome tattoos are for fans that love everything about her character, especially her ancient mask.
This cute, colorful tattoo won’t take up much of your body surface area, yet it’s quite vibrant and prominent looking. All credit for this piece goes to the unique-looking mask, the wonderful colors, and of course, the artist who inked it with perfection.
This is a very special design of Princess Mononoke and the Wolf-God Moro. This design represents her two sides, the human-like and the Wolf-like side. The mask is another key focus area of this well-executed design.
Here you can see a young Princess Mononoke with a halfway-worn mask. It’s a lovely tattoo idea for your leg or arm.
She’s inaction, wearing her unique costume. The dense fur and the mask are worn while she battles it out in the forest. Also noteworthy is her sharp main weapon here.
Not many hand tattoo ideas strike me. Yet, this one looks astonishing. I love the idea of having my hand-inked this way — with a colorful Princess Mononoke mask.
Here, the obvious focus is on the mask. It’s incredible how the talented tattooist managed the glowy pattern on the mask with the right mix of tattoo ink. The dot work is no less professional. All in all, this is a masterpiece of one of the most popular film characters in recent history.
A masked Princess Mononoke tattoo with three cute little yellow Kodamas. This tattoo couldn’t look better placed any place other than the upper arm. Kudos for such incredible artwork!
This black and grey leg piece is a true work of art. The attention to detail brings out the complete effect you’d expect from the ancient mask.
I love how the artist has thought of the diamond-shaped base with the forest theme for this design. It’s apt for a Princess Mononoke theme.
This bicep region tattoo is the perfect size and shape to cover the region with maximum grace. If you’re a Princess Mononoke fan, you’re likely to fall in love with this mask concept.
The very fine shading work in this tattoo is of expert-level significance. The Princess looks fully in action. This is one of the few full-body depictions of Princess Mononoke with the mask on. Yet, it’s a fabulous tattoo done exceptionally well on the upper arm.
Princess Mononoke’s Knife Tattoos
Some of you may want a dagger as a tattoo. How about Princess Mononoke’s dagger? Here are some popular options.
Her dagger and some other interesting elements make this tattoo a beautiful pic for the forearm.
This illuminating effect tattoo of the weapon gives this design a unique edge. Such a color scheme looks great on all skin tones.
This bloody scene from the popular film makes for an incredible tattoo idea.
Her weapon is fierce, and so is the overall scene here. The Princess looks inseparably connected with her dagger as she battles the enemies that are a threat to the forest she calls home. By the way, all those creepy, small creatures are Kodama; they inhabit the trees in the forest.
Other Princess Mononoke Film Characters Tattoos
The film is associated with all its main characters, a few of which are preferred by tattoo enthusiasts fans of the film. Shown below are some of the best tattoo ideas having those Princess Mononoke characters.
Ashitaka Tattoos
This Ashitaka and San tattoo is accomplished to perfection in fine black linework. Ashitaka is a character central to the film in question. The name Ashitaka, in Japanese, means “brighter tomorrow.”
This lovely tattoo imagery of Ashitaka and San makes them appear as close friends. It’s ironic; both of them don’t end up together in the end. Nevertheless, the pencil shading style of artwork is nothing short of sheer perfection.
In this tattoo, the tattooist has successfully exhibited Ashitaka’s original film look by using very few colors.
This classic look tattoo of Ashitaka and San is a scene from Irontown.
At the end of the film, both Princess Mononoke and Ashitaka lose their fight. This professionally inked tattoo shows the empathetic Ashitaka embracing San, though love doesn’t eventually brew between them.
This tattoo is a scene right out of the film. Here you can see Ashitaka, Yakul, and Kodama.
Forest Spirit Tattoos
There’s another supporting character in the film Princess Mononoke that is a popular tattoo choice. The character is Forest Spirit, also known as Shishigami or Night-Walker. The Forest Spirit is the god of life and death. Let’s check out the topmost loved Forest Spirit tattoos.
This stunning design has an array of vibrant colors that give the striking character an equally striking look. This unique tattoo looks quite special on the forearm or calf.
If you’re one of those bold folks, you’d love this large Forest Spirit tattoo. And, why not, especially if you’re a Princess Mononoke fan! This stunner of a tattoo will take up your entire back surface to make it appear full of purpose and meaning. The forest is associated with a vast range of possibilities, lots of energy, unlimited wisdom, knowledge, and a great level of understanding.
Again, for the bold fans of the film, this is a chest piece that will blow your mind away. This perfectly symmetrical Forest Spirit tattoo from Princess Mononoke also features a couple of Kodama and some filigree.
Here’s another piece to inspire you. The colors, simplicity, and overall artwork look pleasing and amazing.
Lord Okkoto Tattoo
The old boar-god, Okkoto, is a blind boar that, along with his warriors, took on to attack the humans. In the end, all his warriors died, and he got heavily injured. There were human warriors disguised as Okotto’s warriors in the forest. To help him find them, Princess Mononoke guided him through the forest. To her dismay, however, Okkoto ends up falling prey to hatred and becoming a demon, much like Nago (a predecessor boar-god) did.
Kodama Tattoos
The following set of tattoos inspired from Princess Mononoke are based on the unnamed creatures in the movie. These creatures are the Kodama. Their presence in the forest signifies that the forest is in a healthy state of being.
This vibrant tattoo employs hues of blue and green for a glowy look. The presence of a Kodama in the flower signifies the general well-being of the forest. This tattoo looks beautiful and healthy.
In this colorful calf area tattoo, different elements of the forest, including mushrooms, leaves, and other vegetation, are adorned by different Kodama. This unique idea is sure to get heads turning and fans of the film raving with inspiration.
This shoulder area Kodama tattoo looks pretty, elegant and denotes positivity and health. It’s a great choice for tattoo lovers who are fans of these unnamed yet popular characters from Princess Mononoke.
Looking for a black linework tattoo that uses up the greater part of your arm area? This flowery Kodama tattoo inked to perfection might be a popular answer.
The fact that there are a plethora of Kodama tattoo designs on the internet, perhaps as many as San tattoo ideas, means they’re quite popular. This particular design is simple yet eye-catching and fun.
The three Kodoma seem to be having fun in the lush, healthy green forest. Did you know, as per Japanese culture, Kodama would protect villages and houses within if the Kodama were properly worshipped?
Kodama are the white tree spirits in Princess Mononoke that roam around the forest land. They protect you from trouble. So if you’re looking for a quirky, good luck tattoo idea, look no further.
Moro & Princess Mononoke Tattoos
In Princess Mononoke, Moro is the name of the giant, 300-year-old wolf goddess. She is a mountain wolf goddess and mother to two unnamed pups. She is also an adoptive mother to San — her human daughter. Moro and Princess Mononoke tattoos are a wonderful choice because Moro is an intelligent, strong, and caring individual. She hates humans in her quest to safeguard her home forest and the forest spirit. Her aim is to demolish the presence of Lady Eboshi. Moro only cares for one human, and that is San. She’s also a bit cynical.
This arm piece of Moro with San shows the mother and daughter in all their closeness. Moro has long white fur, distinct olive eyes, and due to being bloodshot, she has red whites in her eyes. Moro’s large teeth, giant size, purple-brown nose, and two tails further give her a distinct appearance.
This tattoo of Moro and San in fine black line work looks elegant on the arm.
This is the best possible use of white tattoo ink. A strong film character, great artwork by the artist, and perfect positioning for the design, combined with a distinct color scheme, make this a one-of-a-kind piece.
This is a more colorful design showing a raging Moro amidst other Princess Mononoke forest elements.
If you’re looking for an intimidating tattoo that is simple, fierce, yet small, this Moro idea is an awesome choice. Those claws would have onlooker’s attention at first sight!
What better depiction of the duo protecting their home forest than this tattoo design. The touch of color and the many Kodama add more strength to this scene.
Now, putting things in perspective by employing intricate dot work, here’s a tattoo that is highly immaculate. The glimpses of bloody red are a reminder of the horrific scenes in the film.
This subdued tattoo isn’t as simple as it looks. It takes time to get the dense design into fruition. The artist has done a wonderful job. The fine, grey shading work was achieved using the best tattoo kits available, for sure.
This black and red masterpiece is astonishing, to say the least. It’s super fine and immensely detailed. You feel the film scene coming to life just by looking at this piece—a wonderful idea for the side of the upper back region of your body.
This subtle look is perfect if you’re looking for a small-sized wolf-themed tattoo. Here you have a larger-than-life film character (Moro) in a played-down yet impressive look.
This large leg piece is an ideal composition out of the film. You have two main characters, incredible artwork, and perfect placement.
If you have the time on hand and money in your pockets, this choice is number one. Larger and more detailed pieces like this one come with their lifelong perks.
This cute black and white tattoo of the duo looks amazing on the calf area.
Yakul Tattoos
Yakul is the name of the royal red elk that Ashitaka rides. In Japanese, Yakul is also known as Yakkuru. Yakul looks quite similar to the Forest Spirit, the prime differences being that Yakul does not have a human-like face and several horns like the Forest Spirit.
This is Ashitaka’s royal red elk Yakul shaded with grey ink. Tattoos of the Yakul are popular among fans of the feature film.
This is another fantastic Yakul design for the forearm. It’s amazing how appealing the animal looks in shades of grey.
Other Princess Mononoke Tattoos For Inspiration
If that wasn’t enough, before I round up, check out a few more awe-inspiring tattoo designs from the film:
Conclusion
The Studio Ghibli feature, Princess Mononoke, is easily among the most graphic and violent animations. That’s all the more reason why Princess Mononoke tattoos emerge as the most uniquely stylized, mature, and hence popular variety of tattoos compared to all the other Studio Ghibli movie tattoos and imagery available. Each of the handpicked designs above are sure to inspire you; they already have inspired thousands of admirers online from all over the world.
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