branding human skin

Branding may be bringing up the wrong things, but I know that in the later 90s it was a common body modification, in lieu of tattoos. Maybe add "body modification" to your search?

I had to go and look. Yup, that works - also scarification tattoo. Goodness me, what people do to themselves.....

rosehips said:

So the answer to my question about coloration seems to be that it returns, more or less, to the person's natural skin color unless dyes are used. Anyone know anything that contradicts this?

I can't seem to find much to help with my first question, though. I know in high school some of my friends were into branding themselves and some of the brands didn't turn out looking very clear. The brands in question were very small, though, and the one I'm trying to imagine would be significantly larger. Does anyone know more about it?

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I can't find anything about right now, but the English branded convicts before selling them into slavery. There were several reasons why this practice was ended, and that they were pale skinned wasn't among the reasons, but they tended to be less inclined to accept their fates than Africans were, and the brands were not very permanent, so after a number of years the brands could bw hidden, and the slaves could escape to live in the general population. Alas, I can't find much of the practice.

I googled cattle branding to see how long that lasts. There is an interesting discussion of hot vs cold branding here:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeze_brand.
A lot of it is about hair growth.

You might try searching for information on scars and how long they last on people - more a plastic surgery type of question. I am thinking about people with bad burns being permanently marked - and that brings you on to the question of how the branding is done, and how deep the damage goes.

Maryn said:

I can't remember its name, but a black fraternity in the US uses branding as an initiation ritual. It's on the upper arm and I remember seeing dozens of photographs of it perhaps a decade ago.

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It's the Omegas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omega_Psi_Phi#.22Unofficial.22_practices

There's also a priceless Key & Peele skit making fun of the practice...

Don't know if you still need help but I'll try.

Under ideal conditions- subject doesn't move, implement (iron) is neither too hot nor cool, implement is held to skin the correct time, wound is tended properly- the resultant mark is fairly clear and defined. It resembles a scar, lighter than the surrounding skin, possibly raised, with a very definite texture difference. It will over time fade or become less defined though it won't ever go away altogether.

However, this all relies on ideal conditions. Especially if the wounds doesn't heal properly or isn't attended regularly, infection is common and can be serious, even life threatening. Furthermore, the resultant scar will be larger and won't reflect the intended brand's original design.

Hope this helps.