Re: [Serious] Cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey
Shame on Snopes....
I've lived decades believing that justification (if not the whole story as posted)
Which leaves open the question: What is then, a brass monkey's balls?
My earliest recolection of a brass monkey(s) was on my maternal greandmothers mantel piece with see no evil, hear no evil, say no evil gestures... Not that there were any balls involved... Then again, I ws only about 3...
A release mechanism is disclosed for releasing an object such as a ball from a body under the force of gravity. A bimetallic element obstructs or opens an opening in the body for retaining or releasing the object depending upon the temperature of the bimetallic element. The release mechanism may be incorporated into a novelty "brass monkey" for "emasculating" the monkey when the temperature decreases to a predetermined temperature at which the balls in the "brass monkey" are permitted to drop to a base which is designed to produce an audible sound when struck by the balls.
-- It hurt the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall.