Brass Monkey ?QED

Posted by Monkey-Spanker on March 11, 2002

In Reply to: Brass Monkey ?QED posted by James Briggs on February 05, 2002

LOL Don't u know that a brass monkey wasn't designed to be on board a ship, and 99% of the time wasn't even made of brass...

At the ports beside the huge naval cannons were wooden "trays" that held a stack of cannon balls. These were named "brass monkeys" for some obscure reason.

In adverse weather conditions, these got quite wet and warped, and didn't hold the balls too well.

In the middle of winter, when it was coldest, the moisture on the cannon balls would freeze.

Now we all know that water expands when it turns to ice, and this expansion could lead to a ball or two falling off the stack...

"Cold enough to freeze balls off a brass monkey"

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spanker