Brass Monkey (colloquial Expression)

Brass Monkey (colloquial Expression)

The phrase "cold enough to freeze the balls off (or on) a brass monkey" is a colloquial expression used by some English speakers. The reference to the testes (as the term balls is commonly understood to mean) of the brass monkey appears to be a 20th century variant on the expression, prefigured by a range of references to other body parts, especially the nose and tail.

During the 19th and 20th centuries, small monkeys cast from the alloy brass were very common tourist souvenirs from China and Japan. They usually, but not always, came in a set of three representing the Three Wise Monkeys carved in wood above the Shrine of Toshogu in Nikkō, Japan. These monkeys were often cast with all three in a single piece. In other sets they were made singly. Although three was the usual number, some sets of monkeys added a fourth, with its hand covering its genitals. Old brass monkeys of this type are collectors items. Michael Quinion, advisor to The Oxford English Dictionary and author of World Wide Words says "It’s more than likely the term came from them".