Origins of the Moustache

Wednesday, 16 November 2011

Mr Jones reports:

Last week I travelled to Kiev on a fact finding mission to research the origins of the Mustache.

Mustaches were of course invented by Ukrainian farmers in the 5th century as a way of keeping flies out of their Borsch in the Summer, whilst allowing the sun and a cool breeze to reach the otherwise bead-clad chin of the winter months. The Mustache was then popularized by King Vladimir Sviatoslavich the Great in the 10th Century, who was gifted a mustache by the people of Kyiv after he brought Byzantium christianity to the realm.

In later years the Ukranian Mustache was heavily utilized by the Soviet space program, where Ukranian men were offered incentives to grow large bushy mustaches to be harvested for their thermal efficiency in the development of heat shields for the Soyuz re-entry capsule. Proud and nationalistic Ukranian men quietly abandoned years of mustache heritage and went clean shaven significantly impacting the soviet space program.

In modern Ukraine, the traditional Mustache can still be seen, here is a Kobza minstrel sporting the traditional Ukrainian Mustache.

[Movember]

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