One Thousand Beards: A Cultural History of Facial Hair

Early cave paintings show Stone Agers plucking out facial hair with sea shells, suggesting that the decision to grow or not grow a beard is almost as old as human society itself. Allan Peterkin's One Thousand Beards: A Cultural History of Facial Hair traces the beard's (and the razor's) storied past, including styles, regulations and cultural significance from the ancient Egyptians to the present day. The breezy and concise illustrated volume also covers the various religious meanings of beards, facial hair in gay culture, bearded ladies and the beard as interpreted by Freud. Peterkin includes instructions for washing, dying, trimming and shaving all kinds of beards from Amish-style to the Franz Josef.