A Bulgarian tattoo artist, Valio Ska, has made global headlines as he turned a Norwegian man's stump into a dolphin's head.

Heine Braeck, 33, was sick of his "tired-looking' amputated limb, which was injured in a childhood accident on a train track, The Daily Mail reported.

The Norwegian, of Sarpsborg, decided its shape was identical to a dolphin's head, so he asked Bulgarian tattooist Valio Ska to turn it into a 3D tattoo of the marine animal - with uncanny results.

Valio Ska, who runs 'Sofia Ink' in Bulgaria, spent 3.5 hours on the complicated job.

"When I was 13 I tried to take a shortcut across the top of a stationary train which started moving. I lost my balance and grabbed hold of the wire that powers the train and got fried. The first thing I saw after surgery was how much my arm was shaped like a dolphin's head. I finally decided to do something about it and got in touch with Valio and arranged to have the tattoo done," Sarpsborg explained.

"My friends think it is awesome and I love it because I don't have to look at a tired old stump anymore," he added.