Sheldon Marker, age 9, of Barre, Vt., for his question:

WHEN WAS TATTOOING STARTED?

Tattooing is the practice of making permanent colored designs on the human body. It is done by pricking small, deep holes in the skin and placing colored matter in them. No one knows exactly when or where tattooing started, but some Egyptian mummies of 1300 B.C. show blue tattoo marks under the skin.

Tattooing is a popular custom among sailors and soldiers of many countries.

The Japanese and the Burmese have done the most elaborate tattooing in the world. Many Burmese have their entire bodies covered with colorful pictures of plants, animals and human faces. The people of southeastern New Guinea regard tattoo marks on girls as signs of beauty.

Tattooing isn't the only way of marking the body. Some members of tribes in Africa cut deep scars into their skin. The cuts are often tribal markings and the process is called scarification.

The Maori tribes of New Zealand once rubbed blue coloring into deep grooves in their faces.