[boscoe]

I found this on europastar.com

freezing the balls off a brass monkey doesn’t refer to a brass monkey asking the whereabouts of a good welder, but it pertains to the old wooden fighting ships of yore. Cannonballs were placed beside the guns on a large brass ring called a monkey and when the weather was very cold the brass shrank and the cannonballs rolled off.

 

[bullandvodka]

Wow. Who knew this? I'd think many are aware of the phrase, but did anyone here know the history of this?

Boscoe, what was this information doing in EuropeStar? I thought that periodical was just covering the European watch industry.

 

[Steve]

I learned that while in the Navy.

You learn all kinds of useless information during a 20n year career...

:lol:

 

[GradyPhilpott]

Sorry, guys. It's wierd, but untrue.

http://www.snopes.com/language/stories/brass.asp

 

[Shepherd Seph]

Sad... I've been telling that story every time it hits negative temps... a significant portion of my witty banter is just been zapped

 

[GradyPhilpott]

Not zapped! Enhanced.

Now you have an entire history of the figure of speech to relate to your shivering friends and how it evolved from a brass monkey's whiskers to gonads to the canard of the cannon balls on the deck of a ship.

 

[boscoe]

This is fascinating. Thanks!