Researchers say a set of ancient tools found in a box at a Canberra university is the world's oldest known complete tattoo kit, thought to be made from human bones.

Key points: The tools were fashioned out of bones, some of which researchers say were most likely human bones

The tools were fashioned out of bones, some of which researchers say were most likely human bones Researchers say the bones may come from the graves of the tattooist's relatives

Researchers say the bones may come from the graves of the tattooist's relatives Radiocarbon dating proved the kit was about 2,700 years old, dating back to the beginning of Polynesian cultures

Four tattooing implements were found along with what was believed to be an ink pot on Tonga's Tongatapu Island in 1963.

Archaeologists knew the find was significant, but no one was sure how old the implements were.

Australian National University's Geoffrey Clark and Griffith University's Michelle Langley teamed up to study the artefacts in detail, using radiocarbon dating technology to determine their age.

It turns out they were 2,700 years old.

Associate Professor Geoffrey Clark said the bone fragments were missing for years. ( Jack Fox, Australian National University )

"The question has always been, were these tools introduced to the Pacific through migration, or were they developed in Polynesia where we know tattooing has a very prominent role in society and spread from there?," Associate Professor Clark said.

"This discovery pushes the date of Polynesian tattooing right back to the beginnings of Polynesian cultures around 2,700 years ago."

The pair documented their findings in a research paper published this month, which had even more surprising details.

Made from the bones of the dead

Two of the tools were made from seabird bones, while the other two were made from the bones of a large mammal.

"As there were no other mammals of that size on the island at the time, and human bone is known to be a preferred material for making tattooing combs, we believe they are most likely made from human bone," Dr Langley said.

Sorry, this video has expired Associate Professor Clark explains the cultural significance of human bones being used in tattooing tools.

Associate Professor Clark said the bones could have been plucked from the graves of the tattooist's loved ones.

"We know that early burials in the regions were constantly visited by people," he explained.

"People were taking out things like skulls and limb bones.

"We never really know why they were doing this, if they were using the bones in shrines or something.

"The fact [the bones] were used tools like tattooing implements suggest that they were using the remains of relatives."

It's possible the tattooing process was used as a way of honouring and connecting with ancestors.

But, as it was roughly 2,700 years ago, Associate Professor Clark says there was no way of knowing for sure.

Painful procedure with lasting results

When explaining the tattooing process, he pointed out the word "tattoo" derives from the word "tatau", meaning to "to strike".

He said the bone fragment would have been sharpened down into a blade or a comb before being fitted with a handle.

The tattooist would then dip the tool into a small container filled with a natural ink and take another tool, something like a small baton, to drive the ink into the skin.

"They hit the handle as they're tapping," Associate Professor Clark said.

"As the tattooist is working they're tap, tap, tapping, they're driving the bone into the flesh.

"As long as [the ink] goes beneath the dermis of the skin, [the tattoo] lasts."

It's believed the bones could have been those of the relatives off the tattooist. ( Wal Ambrose, Australian National University )

Associate Professor Clark knows this all too well, being tattooed with the same technique 18 years ago.

While these ancient tattooing methods make for lasting designs, they require a higher pain threshold to endure the procedure.

"It's more painful than a standard electric tattoo gun," Associate Professor Clark said.

"But it depends on how much of the body surface is being tattooed and where."

Significant find lost for years

The discovery was exciting for the researchers, particularly as the kit was thought to be lost.

The pieces had been kept in an offsite storage facility, which was destroyed in the Canberra firestorm of January, 2003.

Close-ups of the tools show ink residue on the implements. ( Michelle Langley, Griffith University )

"We had assumed these important artefacts that we had had gone up in smoke," Associate Professor Clark said.

"Later on it was found they had been taken out while someone had been studying them in another part of the university."

It was seven years before they realised the fragments had been spared from the horrific fires, with the artefacts lost amid the chaos.

"Someone just contacted us and said 'we found this box'," Associate Professor Clark said.

"They said 'it looks to be full of archaeological material that you might be interested in it'."

While the ink pot originally found with the bones is still unaccounted for, parts of the tattoo kit are expected to go on public display later this year as part of Australian National University's anniversary celebrations.