1894 Brewer’s / N / Nose Tax (The)
In the ninth century the Danes imposed on Irish houses a poll tax, historically called the “Nose Tax,” because those who neglectèd to pay the ounce of gold were punished by having their nose slit.
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.