Bruno Mars’s best-documented tattoos are traditional designs tied to family, including a heart with his mother’s name, an anchor connected in published accounts to his grandfather, and a knife marked “Pete’s Boy.” Older photographs also show a gypsy-woman portrait; later reporting adds a Cristo Redentor chest tattoo.

His tattoo history includes a sacred-heart design he later covered after deciding the result was wrong. The visible collection has changed over time, but the older pieces remain easy to recognize in photographs and interviews.

Bernadette is written across the heart on Bruno Mars’s upper arm

A red heart and banner carrying “Bernadette” sit high on Mars’s upper arm. Bernadette was his mother. The large lettering and bold outline make the name readable in portraits, while the open skin around it keeps the heart distinct from the other arm tattoos.

Mars has described this as the last tattoo he received during an earlier phase of his collection. The design uses a familiar heart-and-banner form for a specific family tribute.

The anchor on Bruno Mars’s forearm uses classic rope and color

The forearm anchor is drawn in gray with rope around it and red accents at the flukes. Its rounded top and heavy outline give it the look of traditional flash rather than a realistic object.

Published tattoo profiles connect the anchor to Mars’s grandfather and his maritime service. The form is familiar, but the reported family link gives this tattoo a more specific context.

The “Pete’s Boy” knife links Bruno Mars’s arm to his father

The knife tattoo carries the words “Pete’s Boy.” Published accounts connect the phrase to Mars’s father and to his birth name, Peter Gene Hernandez. In photographs, the long blade follows the upper arm, while the lettering turns it into a family reference.

The images support the knife and wording, but do not establish extra meanings for every nearby mark.

Mars’s visible forearm collection carries the traditional color language

A gypsy-woman portrait appears on Mars’s forearm, with dark hair, a rose and ornamental details around the face and neck. Sources identify the design as the work of tattoo artist Kyle Gibson. Its saturated color and bold outline distinguish it from the gray anchor and the red heart.

The portrait adds a figure to a collection otherwise built around clear symbols and lettering. The sources identify the tattoo but do not give it a separate personal explanation.

Bruno Mars’s later arm images show the tattoos in performance

Performance photographs show the arm tattoos while Mars raises a microphone or moves under stage lights. Clothing and lighting can hide details or make separate pieces look like one dark field. The images confirm that the known designs stayed visible across different performances, but they are not a reliable basis for adding unverified tattoos to the inventory.

The first chapter did not remain unchanged

Mars has said an earlier sacred-heart tattoo, made when he was nineteen, came out wrong. He later covered it rather than keep it as a visible centerpiece. The episode explains why older accounts may mention a sacred heart that does not appear in photographs of his current collection.

It also shows that the collection was not fixed from the start: some designs were added, while others were changed or covered.

Later reporting adds another chapter

Brazilian reports in 2024 described Mars receiving a Cristo Redentor tattoo on his chest from a Brazilian artist. That report adds a later chapter to a history more often documented through the older arm pieces. The subject and reported artist context are clear; finer details should stay within what the published images show.

Why the collection stays immediately recognizable

The clearest record combines readable images with reported family context: Bernadette’s name in a heart, the anchor’s connection to his grandfather, and “Pete’s Boy” for his father. The gypsy portrait and later Cristo Redentor report widen the collection beyond those family references.

Mars also discusses his tattoos and tattoo artist Adam Daniel in the interview clip below.