Are these the world's most painful tattoos? Ethiopian and Sudanese tribes show off their intricate raised patterns created using THORNS

Tribes who scarify include Ethiopia's Bodi and Surma tribes, South Sudan's Nuer and Uganda's Karamojong


Surma girls choose to go through the process voluntarily and must not show pain during the 10-minute ritual


Gaar scars are a sign of maturity for Nuer men but fewer are doing it thanks to inter-tribal conflict

From delicate sw irls of raised flesh to intricate dotted patter ns, the scars that decorate the bodies of Ethiopia's Bodi, Mursi and Surma tribes are more than just the sign of an old injury.

For these aren't just any scars: They're an elaborate part of local culture and signify everything from beauty to adulthood or even, in some cases, are simply a mark of belonging.


But Ethiopian tribes aren't the only ones to embrace scarification. In Uganda, the Karamojong are famous for their elaborate scar patterns, while across Ethiopia's border with Sudan, Nuer men bear scarred foreheads and consider getting them a key part of the transition from boy to man.

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Adornment: Along with intricate scar patterns, many Surma women also embrace piercings and traditional lip plates (right)


Markings: A Mursi man shows off the scar patterns on his chest. Mursi people regard scars as a sign of beauty and strength

Neighbours: Both the Menit (both images) and Surma tribes bear facial scarifications but despite living only a few miles apart, regularly oppose each other


Beauty: A woman from the Menit tribe who live close to the Surma in the Omo Valley. Both are currently under threat of being displaced by encroaching plantations

Now the stunning scar markings of Ethiopia and Sudan are the subject of an incredible set of photographs by French snapper, Eric Lafforgue, who travelled through the country observing cutting ceremonies and meeting the locals.

During a visit to the Surma tribe, who live in the country's remote Omo Valley, he witnessed a scarification ceremony, which involved creating the patterns using thorns and a razor.


'The12-year-old girl who was being cut didn't say a word during the 10-minute ceremony and refused to show any pain,' he revealed. 'Her mother used a thorn to pull the skin out and a razor blade to cut the skin.

'At the end, I asked her whether having her skin cut had been tough and she replied that she was close to collapse. It was incredible as she didn't show any sign of pain on her face during the ceremony as that would have been seen as shameful for the family.'

What's more, he explained, despite the pain, the girl herself initiated the ceremony as Surma girls aren't obliged to take part. 'Scars are a sign of beauty within the tribe,' he added.

'Children who go to school or convert to Christianity don't do it but the others see the ability to cope with pain as a sign that they will be able to cope with childbirth in future.'

Varied: While some tribes such as the Dassanech, also from the Omo River Valley, focus on the shoulders, the Surma and others also include the face and head (right)


Ceremony: A Surma scarification ritual using thorns and a razor is carried out on a 12-year-old girl who volunteered to be scarred

Painful: Although the process isn't without pain, Lafforgue says the girl kept a straight face throughout in order not to shame her family

End result: After the initial cut, scars have organic sap or ash rubbed into them in order to make them heal as raised bumps

Intricate: Scar patterns aren't reserved solely for Surma women - men, as pictured right, also have intricate patterns made from dotted scars


Other tribes who live in the Omo Valley, among them the Bodi, also embrace scarification and often use sap or ash to make the resulting wounds more prominent when they heal.

But it seems that not everyone is impressed. 'People wearing scarifications are seen as "primitives" by many urban Ethiopians and suffer from this,' Lafforgue explains. 'Those who have had them but have been to school as well often try to hide them.'

Others, such as the Mursi tribe, consider scars a sign of beauty and strength, although as Lafforgue relates, thanks to an influx of workers from other parts of Ethiopia, scarification is becoming an increasingly risky business.


'Using shared blades is a huge problem in the south Omo region,' explains Lafforgue. 'Hepatitis is starting to become