An important part of Tuvan men’s costume is the belt. It marked the manhood of young and adult men showing their efficiency, as in many other cultures. Belts were different and corresponded to the social status of a person. For example, men of power and military officials had leather belts full of silver and bronze plaques. Such belts were found in Turkic burials of the 7th–8th centuries on the territory of Tuva and were worn by Tuvans up to the 20th century. Herdsmen, shepherds and hunters had woven belts from woolen yarn and leather strips, and a feudal lord had a belt made from a piece of silk sufficient for sewing a ton (robe).

At the third age, from 16 to 29, a young man could have only one pendant suspended from his belt — a knife in a sheath — because he could not smoke and openly wear smoking accessories. In some cases, a unique object called an ispiс, otherwise a device for plucking hair, was suspended from the belt.

Only young men needed to have an ispic. Until the early 20th century, a Tuvan man could not have a beard before he reached the age of 40, because it was believed to be a respectable age when men gained life experience and could wear a mustache. Until then, all hair on the chin and over the lips were carefully plucked with this device.

A wealthy Tuvan man could order a silver ispic from a blacksmith. Such items were often inlaid with natural stones. Nowadays, many men’s belt accessories (knife in a sheath, flintlock, and buckle) can still be seen on Tuvan men’s belts during holidays and important dates, but the ispic has completely fallen out of use.

The hair plucking device consists of two trapezoidal metal plates soldered tightly together. The plates are also additionally connected by a rectangular rim decorated with a straight incision. A ring for hanging is soldered on top of the head. The head and the lower part are decorated with a vegetal pattern in the form of leaf shoots. In the middle there are decorative straight incisions.