It painted the town red — and blue and green and yellow — for 134 years. But now, the world’s oldest tattoo parlor is in jeopardy of closing.
Tattoo Ole in Copenhagen, which opened in 1884 as the first Scandinavian tattoo shop, has been one of the most famous — and sought-after — parlors in Europe.
The ink shop became popular in the early 20th century as sailors poured into the bustling port city looking to get tatted up. Over the years, it’s drawn designs on everyone from prostitutes to King Frederick IX of Denmark, who was a regular in the 1950s and ’60s. (His artist, Bimbo, was heralded as the “tattoo artist of kings.”)
But the building owners want to turn the hallowed space into a restaurant — and locals aren’t happy.
“I think Tattoo Ole is too important to close,” the shop’s owner, Majbritt Petersen, tells the Sun. “People who own the building where we are don’t seem to be fans of tattoos. They want to have a bigger kitchen, and I want to save history.”
Petersen, or Lille Ole to those in the know, feels so strongly that she plans to take the battle to court.
More than 9,000 people from the online tattoo community Tattoodo have signed a petition to save this colorful piece of history.