RUSSIA. Copper "Beard" Token, 1705. Kadashevsky (Moscow) Mint. Peter I (The Great). PCGS SPECIMEN-35 Gold Shield.Bit-3893; Brekke-3. Type II, narrow beard/small crown variety. Crowned double-headed imperial eagle countermark. Issued by decree of 16 January 1705. Obverse: Legend above nose, mustache, mouth, and goatee; imperial counterstamp (indicating payment of tax) within incuse circle to left; Reverse: Imperial double eagle above Cyrillic date.An always popular type, these "beard tokens were instituted by Peter I (The Great) in an attempt to modernize Russian society and become more European. As such, in order for men to wear a beard, it was necessary to pay a tax, thereby ensuring that much of the poor and peasant class would be clean shaven. Only those of means could afford such a luxury, and these tokens were given (and counterstamped as a form of cancellation) in order to show that the recipient had indeed paid their tax and could therefore wear a beard.
