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 Replies: 16 / Views: 5,294 |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
 Most of the ‘styles' today include weird sorts of beards. What would happen if you were to pay the government to have a beard, be it one hair hanging from your chin? Would you still keep it? Beard was a fashion statement in the 1500s and so in the year 1535 King Henry VIII of England decided to impose a tax on it. The tax was variable of course, depending on the social status and position of the ‘bearded'. The same kind of tax was imposed in Russia in the year 1705 by Tsar Peter I and special coins were issued for the tax.
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Moderator
 United States
14463 Posts |
the lettering looks greek. If you have the coin, what does the reverse look like  Edited by Fuzzy317
04/19/2012 05:47 am
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Pillar of the Community
Russian Federation
5177 Posts |
If real, that would be a beard tax token (yeah, beard tax, laws can be weird like that) from the reign of Peter I of Russia (i.e. 1700s or so).
However, as those are both incredibly rare in the real version and fairly commonly faked, I'd bet that yours is a fake (I don't think I've ever seen the real thing).
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Moderator
Australia
16857 Posts |
Correct. It's a Russian "Beard Tax token". Backstory: Tsar Peter the Great (reigned 1682-1725) was a reformer, and wished to make his country "modern" and "European". The problem was, beards were traditional in Russia at the time, while they had gone out of fashion in Europe. So in 1705, Tsar Peter passed laws prohibiting beards. There were exemptions: Orthodox priests, for example, believed beards were an essential part of their "uniform" and so were granted an exemption. But any ordinary citizen, be they serf or nobleman, who wished to continue to sport a beard, had to pay for the privilege. The tokens were issued as a kind of receipt, which had to be presented on demand if a soldier stopped you in the street and demanded proof you had paid the beard tax. The tax rates were different for serfs (1 kopek) and nobles (100 kopeks), and the tokens were different, too: serf tokens were bronze, noble tokens were silver. I have seen genuine examples of both, displayed on "Odd and Curious night" at my local coin club meeting. This brief Wikipedia article shows a silver version; here's an old CCF thread with a copper one. January1may brings up an important point: these uniquely Russian tokens are very popular with collectors in Russia and have been widely replicated. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis
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Pillar of the Community
Serbia (Srbija)
576 Posts |
Interesting token, I never saw anything like that...
My collection on Numista page: 7500 different coins and counting... https://en.numista.com/echanges/pro...hp?id=129798 |
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Rest in Peace
United States
4078 Posts |
Biggfredd, did Sap foil you?  foil is spelled correct  Wow! Interesting history, thanks Sap.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
575 Posts |
Sorry to say this but 100% fake.
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Valued Member
United States
318 Posts |
That is a really cool piece! Very unique looking.
Awe......if it is a fake, too bad. BUT it still is nice!!
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
2490 Posts |
My beard (which is 45 years old next month) would rather like one of these. Anyone who has one/spots one, I'd like to know.
Bob
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Rest in Peace
 United States
9104 Posts |
I'm a member of SOB Numismatists (Society of Bearded). Are they still active?
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
bpoc1-
I knew and gave the answer, I just thought it was an interesting coin, and wanted to test the ccf crew.
They did not disappoint, even tho they only mentioned the newer examples.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10045 Posts |
Quote:
...if a soldier stopped you in the street and demanded proof you had paid the beard tax. That's one of those sentences I never imagined I'd read.  |
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
575 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
2490 Posts |
I may just settle for a fake, although now I've seen what some of those can fetch.............  |
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Rest in Peace
United States
9104 Posts |
Great-great-whatever would have passed down a pretty good return if he paid his taxes. |
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
12437 Posts |
Quote:
I'm a member of SOB Numismatists (Society of Bearded). Are they still active?
LOL biggfredd, I thought that was just your dry wit showing until the May edition of The Numismatist arrived in my mailbox today. As I was thumbing through the pages, I stopped dead on page 74 when I saw an article titled S.O.B. Numismatists- bearded collectors revitalize a convention tradition! Quote:
Past and wannabe members are reestablishing the society and will hold a meeting at the 2012 World's Fair of Money in Philadelphia to discuss the group's future, share stories and socialize over libations. In keeping with the society's original mission, prerequisites for membership are a beard; a healthy liver; a strong dislike for rules, regulations, and related pomposity; and a sense of humor. To receive updates, as well as the time and location of the gathering, phone (PM me for number) or e-mail beards AT money.org |
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Replies: 16 / Views: 5,294 |
Posted 04/19/2012 05:59 am
