In the Greco-Roman world intact genitals , including the foreskin , were considered a sign of beauty , civility , and masculinity . Foreskin restoration is of ancient origin and dates back to the reign of the Roman Emperor Tiberius , when surgical means were taken to lengthen the foreskin of individuals born with either a short foreskin that did not cover the glans completely or a completely exposed glans as a result of circumcision . In Classical Greek and Roman societies , exposure of the glans was considered gross and improper , and did not conform to the Hellenistic ideal of gymnastic nudity . Men with short foreskins would wear the kynodesme to prevent exposure . As a consequence of this social stigma , an early form of foreskin restoration known as '' epispasm '' was practiced among some Jews in Ancient Rome . Again , during World War II some European Jews sought foreskin restoration to avoid Nazi persecution
Nazi persecution
The Holocaust
Foreskin restoration