where does the term 'brass monkeys' come from?

Answer 1

a brass monkey was a brass triangle found on sailing ships in which cannon balls were stored in a pyramid structure, when it was very cold the brass contracted and the cannon balls fell out, hence the term ' cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey'

Answer 2

The "brass triangular cannonballs holder" looks like a myth to me. If the iron cannon ball shrank that much in cold weather (brass doesn't shrink a tremendous amount) then the balls
would be constantly unstable in such a holder because of the ship's rolling and pitching motions, especially in the open ocean in cold conditions.
However, a "monkey" is an old term used by sailors meaning the full daily allowance of rum (could be in a brass receptacle?). A "brass monkey" on the other hand refers to a model (in brass) of The Devil in the guise of an ugly monkey, maybe with freeze-offable bits. Take your pick. There are all sorts of other allusions to monkey worth checking in Brewers Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. You'll see there that it's been £500 quite a long time! Good interesting Q Bazza, thanks a marygold!

Answer 3

"To freeze the balls of a brass monkey" comes from a nautical saying. A brass monkey was a brass triangle that used to hold the cannon balls on a ship in a piramid to stop the heavy balls from rolling around the deck and when they were in severe freezing weather the triangle would shrink by a millimeter of two and the balls would then roll around the deck causing injury and damage.

Answer 4

Brass Monkey Cannonball Holder

Answer 5

from the old days in the navy when the used cannons and cannon balls, its cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey, the monkey was the cannon ball holder and when it got too cold the holder contracted letting the cannon balls fall off.

Answer 6

From seminarys - it's a common problem - men are physically aroused - something is needed to 'discourage' such arousal, different places used different techniques (the term "once bitten twice shy" also derives from these practices). Other places would make use of the gate key which would be rather cold.

Placed in the the 'excited' area it would diminish physical arousal - so it's a Brass Monk Key.

Answer 7

Ships

Answer 8

THE OLD CANNON BALLS ON SHIPS USED TO BE STORED AND CLAMPED IN BRASS RINGS,THEY CALLED THESE MONKEYS.WHEN IT WAS REALLY COLD THE BRASS WOULD SHRINK AND THE CANNON BALLS WOULD FALL......

Answer 9

WHY BRASS MONKEYS
AND WHY BUY BRASS MONKEYS?
The term "Brass Monkeys" is an accepted phrase used in the English language to indicate that the ambient air temperature (or weather) is cold. This use stems from a longer phrase "It is cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey". This generally perceived as a humorous reference to some unfortunate Brass Monkey who loses his testicles if the weather is too cold. Another derived phrase (but irrelevant to our story) is "it's cold enough to freeze your balls off".


The origin and true meaning of this phrase is actually totally unrelated to any form of animal or its testicles. Back in time to the period of the Napoleonic War, the great gunships of this time carried many cannons on various gun decks. As an efficient method of storage and delivery of cannon balls to the cannon for firing, a "Monkey" (this term is used to define a table and/ or a rail) made of brass was used to hold the balls. In very cold temperatures the brass would contract or even break thus allowing the cannon balls to roll off the Monkey onto the gun deck. Hence the sailors would say "it is cold enough to freeze the balls off a Brass Monkey".
Fortunately for ourselves the public perception of this name is closely related to the bits that fit into underwear and it's use as a brand name is accepted as being inherently funny.

GOING TO GREAT LENGTHS
FOR GREAT QUALITY

Less of the history and no more of those ridiculous big capital letters at the start of each paragraph. It's what Brass Monkeys puts into each pair of underpants that affects what you put into them.

Each garment is manufactured in Great Britain, using the finest cotton-rich fabrics, carefully selected componentry, utilising traditional British sewing skills blended with modern construction techniques to produce underwear that will perform to the highest standards.

A rigid quality assurance regime is in permanent operation, every product must pass a rigorous standard of bursting strength, elasticity and durability, ensuring that no matter what moves you make, our garments will always stay with you, providing full support.

Every Brass Monkeys garment is designed and crafted to emphasises the best of the male form without any sacrifice in comfort or functionality. We want every wearer to not only look good, but feel Great.

TRADING HISTORY

We have traded as a UK company for more than eight years, supplying prestigious retailers such as Harrods of London, Jenners of Edinburgh, Lane Crawford of Hong Kong, Smith & Caughy in New Zealand, Robinsons of Singapore, El Cortes in Spain and we have exported to many retailers throughout the world - including Russia, Poland, Finland, Norway, Germany, Holland, Belgium and Ireland.

We have supplied the public directly for over four years and it's through this experience that we can guarantee professional, quality online sales service. We are also happy to deal with any special requirements or advice that you may need.



COMPANY ETHICS

Despite our humorous approach to life - or our "style with a smile" , we treat the responsibility of our web publication and online store with great seriousness. We never seek to offend or link to any site that may be deemed unethical in any way. We operate under the jurisdiction of English Law and seek to uphold this in every aspect of our trading with the consumer, and our suppliers.

We support environmentally friendly manufacturing and material sourcing, we also actively support everyman - the male prostate and testicular cancer campaign. We oppose any form of child labour or third world economic exploitation. We support UK industry - all of our products are designed and produced only in the UK. We do not have a problem being "green" Brass Monkeys.

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