SPQR: Tattoo

This afternoon I saw an arm with a SPQR tattoo. It was on a man who was part of the ritual re-enactment at the Temple of Hercules in honor of the 2,763rd anniversary of the founding of Rome.

SPQR are the first letters of the words in the Latin phrase Senatus Populusque Romanus, "The Senate and the People of Rome." It originally referred to the government of the ancient Roman Republic, and used as an official signature of the government, appearing on coins, civic inscriptions, and on the standards of the Roman legions. Today, SPQR is the motto of the city of Rome and appears in the city's coat of arms, the city's civic buildings, manhole covers, billboards and even as tattoos!