Welcome to Aaron Manky's Cabinet of Curiosities, a production of I Heart Radio and

Grim and Mild. Our world is full of the unexplainable. And if history is an open book, all of these

amazing tales are right there on display, just waiting for us to explore.

Welcome to the Cabinet of Curiosities. History is full of unpopular taxes. Some like Britain's taxation of colonial tea were met with pushback or even revolution.

But a few taxes in history stand out for being not just unpopular, but downright strange.

Like a tax on fireplaces in England during the Middle Ages, or one on animal sacrifices in the time of the Roman Empire.

Governments have tried taxing everything from clocks to wallpaper and card games, even newspapers and hats.

But all of these pale in comparison to attacks instituted by Zarpeter the Great.

In the 17th century, the ruler stunned nobles and peasants alike when he announced a new tax law that changed the face of Russia forever.

And I mean literally, because Peter wasn't taxing a product.

His target was Beards.

The roots of the beard tax can be traced back to 1697,

when the 25-year-old Tsar embarked on a grand tour of Western Europe.

The trip was meant to be educational, a way for Peter to learn about the culture,

politics, and military prowess of his neighbors.

For two whole years, he traveled the continent incognito, even working as a day laborer in the dockyards

of Britain's Royal Navy.

Peter quickly became enthralled with the culture of Western Europe, which seemed infinitely more modern

than his own country.

By the time he returned home in 1698, he was convinced that Russia needed a serious

makeover.

First thing on the chopping block, men's facial hair.

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