cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey

 

Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey

CANNON BALLS!!!    DID YOU KNOW THIS?

 

It was necessary to keep a good supply of cannon balls near the cannon

on old war ships. But how to prevent them from rolling about the deck

was the problem. The best storage method devised was to stack them as

a square based pyramid, with one ball on top, resting on four,

resting on nine, which rested on sixteen.    Thus, a supply of 30 cannon

balls could be stacked in a small area right next to the cannon.

There was only one problem -- how to prevent the bottom layer

from sliding/rolling from under the others.

The solution was a metal plate with 16 round indentations, called,

For  reasons unknown, a Monkey. But if this plate were made of iron, the

iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting

problem was to make them of brass - hence, Brass Monkeys. Few

landlubbers realize that brass contracts much more and much faster

than iron when chilled. Consequently, when the temperature dropped

too far, the brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon

 balls would come right off the monkey.   Thus,it was quite

literally, cold  enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.   

And all this time, you thought that was just a vulgar

expression, didn't you? You must send this fabulous bit of historical

knowledge to at least a few uneducated friends.