In various times and places, the skull and crossbones symbol has had a number of different meanings.
In history and popular culture, this symbol placed on a black flag meant the vessel flying the flag was a pirate ship.
The image has been used by certain military groups, university fraternities and sororities, and secret societies.
In Spanish speaking cultures, it is sometimes used to mark the entrance to a cemetery.
On product packaging, the skull and crossbones indicates that the contents are poisonous in nature and should be handled with caution.
Scroll down for a downloadable PDF of this tutorial.
If you would like to learn to draw a cartoon skull and crossbones, follow this easy, step-by-step drawing tutorial.
You will need a piece of paper and something with which to draw, such as a pencil, marker, or ink pen. An eraser is also recommended.
As you follow this drawing guide, you will notice that each step is accompanied by an illustration. In each picture, new lines drawn during that step are highlighted in blue, while previous lines appear in black.
Sketch lightly at first, as you will need to erase some of the early lines, called guide lines, as you complete your picture.
If you liked this tutorial, see also the following drawing guides: Jack O Lantern, Ghost, and Skeleton.
Step-by-Step Instructions for Drawing a Cartoon Skull
Begin by drawing a circle.
Next, draw a curved line, beginning within the circle and extending downward.
Draw another line on the opposite side, creating a mirror image of the first line.
Erase the portion of the circle that is between the two curved lines.
Draw another curved line extending downward from the middle of the first curved line.
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Draw another line on the opposite side, mirroring the previous line.
Draw a curved line connecting the previous two lines.
Draw a horizontal curve in the middle of the image. This line should resemble a smile.
Draw teeth above the curved line. For each tooth, draw a curved, upside down "U" shaped line. Repeat to create eleven teeth. The two front teeth should be the largest, decreasing in size toward the sides.
Using eleven "U" shaped lines, draw a mirror image of the teeth below the curved line.
Draw the left eye by sketching a circle.
Draw a second circle to form the right eye.
Below the eyes, draw an irregular, egg shaped oval. This forms the nasal cavity.
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Within the oval, draw two curved lines, beginning at the top of the shape and extending to each side.
Draw the bone extending from the upper right side. To begin, draw a large, upside down "U" shaped line. Connected to this, draw another "U" shaped line, open to the left. Connect this line to the skull using a slightly curved line.
Draw the other end of this bone extending from the bottom left. Use two curved lines to form the bone. Each line should be shaped roughly like the upper portion of a question mark.
Draw the bone extending from the bottom right using two curved lines.
Draw the bone on the upper left side. It should be a mirror image of the bone on the right side, consisting of three curved lines.
Shade each of the eyes and the upper portions of the nasal cavity.
Erase the curve from the bottom of the nasal cavity. Your cartoon skull is now complete.
Printable Drawing Tutorial
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Im drawing this for Halloween and it is PERRRFECT
Great! Thanks. 🙂 More skull drawings here: https://easydrawingguides.com/how-to-draw-flaming-skull/
Very easy to follow. Thanks!
Great! So happy you liked it. 🙂
thanks for this
Thanks! 🙂
Great drawing skills
Thanks! 🙂
Thaaanks for this I used this for my hamster Saturn’s cage
Saturn is one happy hamster 🙂
Hello
Hello 😎
wow
very easy to follow, thanks.
You're welcome, Thomas. Did you have fun drawing it?
it was really cool
this skull was really great and very easy to draw i would definitely recommend this to a friend
Thank you, Sydney ❤️
Cool
😎
I really liked this! I did it as a free draw for Art class and It was super easy and came out great! Thanks!
My pleasure, Aria ❤️
hi
Hello 🙂
12345678910 i love this i rate 1000
Such a high rating, thanks! 😎
Wow this is amazing! Really would recommend!
❤️
This is so cool and easy to follow, great drawing skills.Thanks!
Thank you, Isla! What's next on your drawing to do list?
It is very easy to draw and I did this for my drawing competition.
Nice! Did you win the competition? 😎
Hello
Hey 🙂
my didn't turn out right
"Right" isn't a thing when drawing, just try to be creative, have fun and you'll get better with practice 🙂
me nether.
Really easy to draw i needed it for a middle school project thanks
Happy to hear that, Michael. I hope you also had fun drawing it 🙂
Yeah I did and it turned out GREAT