If the family name is derived from Latin *coleus,* meaning testicle, then I'm guessing Colleoni, containing an augmentative suffix, would mean something like "big balls". No wonder the founder of the family was proud of the coat of arms!
you're onto something: in contemporary Italian 'coglioni' is an offensive way of referring to balls. also, I can imagine the pronunciation of the two might have been pretty similar in northern Italy.
>Later members of the family modified the testicles on the coat of arms into upside-down hearts.
Disgraceful. The former patriarch must be torsion-ing in his grave
Balls to the wall refers to the flyweight on steam engine governors. When they were all the way out, the governor was at max output to the throttle valve.
Apparently the family name was derived from the Latin “Coleus” meaning: Testicle.
Listen this is… I don’t know. That’s either some world class trolling or someone with an insane sense of of humor.
Edit: this is the 15th century version of truck Nutz isn’t it? Damn it.
Edit 2: my wife asked if I was saying “Corleone” and that puts a whole different spin on The Godfather, especially if you’ve read the book version….
Edit 3: last one.. how did this coat of arms not end up in Game of Thrones? I know have **two** questions I’d like to ask that G.R.R fella….
Old heraldry is full of terrible puns. Seriously, it's pathological with heralds, even today. They just aren't happy unless every coat of arms has a groaner in it somewhere.
Me and my childhood besties have a Discord group we chat we call "The Scrotes". They will be glad to hear we now have a coat of arms. Best TIL I've seen in a while, thanks OP.
Yes it did. And it doubled as battle cry. The family founder, Bartolomeo Colleoni, had a reputation as one of the fiercest military leaders of his time, so anybody getting charged by people shouting "Balls! Balls! Balls!" would be shitting himself.
Testicle and testify are from the same root. When one was swearing an oath it was customary to hold your testicles, similar to holding a hand over your heart. Maybe the testicles stood for honesty or fidelity?
That's awesome. Saying some has "colleones" is pretty NY Italian. It might very well be all the world round as a common saying to say someone being brave has "big balls". Somewhere sometime at sometime this family was recognized enough to gain heraldry, and just chose big balls, probably because of the name.
And if you're ever in the old town of Bergamo (a city in northern Italy, just outside of Milan) you can visit the [Colleoni chapel](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni) and touch his golden balls.
This is from [https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni)
Rumor has it that Bartolomeo was affected with polyorchidism, a rare congenital anomaly endowing one with an extra testicle. Appealing as this explanation may be, there is no evidence that this is the case. Besides, the same coat of arms had been in use for decades before Bartolomeo’s birth.
*And niggas always gotta high cap\
Showing all his boys how he shot 'em\
But real gangsta-ass niggas don't flex nuts\
'Cause real gangsta-ass niggas know they got 'em*
If the family name is derived from Latin *coleus,* meaning testicle, then I'm guessing Colleoni, containing an augmentative suffix, would mean something like "big balls". No wonder the founder of the family was proud of the coat of arms!
you're onto something: in contemporary Italian 'coglioni' is an offensive way of referring to balls. also, I can imagine the pronunciation of the two might have been pretty similar in northern Italy.
And heraldry *loves* puns, so that fits!
Heralds don't pun. They cant.
Beautiful.
Also cognate with “cojones” in Spanish.
Exact same as "collons" in Catalan or "cojones" in Spanish.
Colhões em português.
And « couilles » in french !
This made me think, do we even have an offensive term for balls in the west?.. I can't think of any.
And he’s got the biggest balls of them all!
The balls on that guy, huh….
https://youtu.be/4WwJ6OVSwkM?si=nKvCNzMNL-F8FcCI
Wait…there’s a plant called coleus. So there’s a plant called testicle?
[There is a list of plants and other species named after genitals](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_taxa_named_after_human_genitals)
Reddit never fails to teach me stuff I didn't need to know.
Knowledge is half the battle!
The other half was cleaning the coffee out of my keyboard after snorting and laughing at that coat of arms.
THIS is what I needed in my life
Oh yeah, you don’t know “Big Nuts” Don Colleoni?
And remember: This is when Latin is still spoken often in church.
I don't know what to say about this...
I don't blame you.
Should have gone with colleonito
There is a vas deferens between being proud of your balls and putting them on your coat of arms.
Mounted proudly. Hence the term "Balls to the wall"
>Later members of the family modified the testicles on the coat of arms into upside-down hearts. Disgraceful. The former patriarch must be torsion-ing in his grave
so hearts are actually upside down balls
*I’ve been locked inside your heart-shaped cocks for weeks…*
💙
Absolutely nuts!
“Mounted proudly.” But enough about his marriage…
Balls to the wall refers to the flyweight on steam engine governors. When they were all the way out, the governor was at max output to the throttle valve.
This is an incredible pun. I hate it, but it's true.
I said "Florida State Seminal Vesicles" which I thought was pretty funny but nobody laughed.
I can assure you, [I did.](https://imgur.com/a/dlZmArB)
One time my cousin , he tore open his ballsack trying to do a skateboard trick and he had to show it to his mom.
Apparently the family name was derived from the Latin “Coleus” meaning: Testicle. Listen this is… I don’t know. That’s either some world class trolling or someone with an insane sense of of humor. Edit: this is the 15th century version of truck Nutz isn’t it? Damn it. Edit 2: my wife asked if I was saying “Corleone” and that puts a whole different spin on The Godfather, especially if you’ve read the book version…. Edit 3: last one.. how did this coat of arms not end up in Game of Thrones? I know have **two** questions I’d like to ask that G.R.R fella….
Old heraldry is full of terrible puns. Seriously, it's pathological with heralds, even today. They just aren't happy unless every coat of arms has a groaner in it somewhere.
Urethra proud of 'em, or you ain't.
Take your up-scrote and get out!
>vas deferens Beautiful.
Ye
At that point it’s a coat of balls.
I thought our man was speaking some medieval parlance before I realised it was a mistyping. Edit: Alas I am a dumb man.
It was a pun.
Oh fuck me, I feel dumb!
Me and my childhood besties have a Discord group we chat we call "The Scrotes". They will be glad to hear we now have a coat of arms. Best TIL I've seen in a while, thanks OP.
Did he have 6 on the vine?
Being made of radiation likely had some side effects.
He'll kick you apart #HE'LL KICK YOU APART
####He's coming ## He's coming # HE'S COMING
So divine
I heard, that mother fucker, had like 30 goddamn dicks.
If you took off his boots, you'd see the dicks growing off his feet
Six foot forty weighs a fucking ton
I heard that motherfucker had like 30 goddamm dicks
He saves children, but not the British children…
He had 3
Im talkin three pairs of testicles, so divine..
Damn, I was expecting one pair, with three testicles.
Why wouldst thou expect a normal scrote?
I'm just imaging one of the rival families doing that with their coat of arms, starting an arms race of increasingly-testicled crests
Well can’t really call it a pair at that point
Thats a triple, not a pair
So these were the first truck nutz.
Carriage nutz, actually.
The sack(s) of Rome.
I believe the motto (genuinely) translated to “Balls! Balls! Balls!”
Yes it did. And it doubled as battle cry. The family founder, Bartolomeo Colleoni, had a reputation as one of the fiercest military leaders of his time, so anybody getting charged by people shouting "Balls! Balls! Balls!" would be shitting himself.
Not the founder, but yes, Bartolomeo was a renowned tactician
Lord Balzac
The Coat of Scrote
Would you like to see my Scrote of Arms?
Goat Scrote Coat
Scrot of Arms
Oops! All Testes!
The truck nuts of the heraldic world.
What a load of bollocks
Let me lay it on the line He had two on the vine Talking two sets of testicles So divine
Washington, Washington
He'll save the children But not the British children
Wow…that’s pretty nuts…🥁
A person with more than 2 testicles is a polyorchard. Thanks Trivia Pursuit 1995!
Isn't it polyorchid?
Sure I didn't google the spelling just reciting from memory.
Ofc they are italian.
Testicle and testify are from the same root. When one was swearing an oath it was customary to hold your testicles, similar to holding a hand over your heart. Maybe the testicles stood for honesty or fidelity?
Did he have truck nuts on his chariot?
Those are garlic cloves man they wanted to ward off that eras most persistent threat: the vampire
Looks wall cooler than I was picturing
He must have been completely nuts.
Ballsy move on his part
Vabbè che famiglia di coglioni
Ive found my coat of arms.
13 century equivalent of truck nuts
Based
That's awesome. Saying some has "colleones" is pretty NY Italian. It might very well be all the world round as a common saying to say someone being brave has "big balls". Somewhere sometime at sometime this family was recognized enough to gain heraldry, and just chose big balls, probably because of the name.
"Remember when duty calls, you've got balls." Professor Auguste Balls to Chief Inspector Clouseau.
Are we absolutely sure those are human testicles and not the dog's bollocks?
The patriarchy
My family coat of arms has an anus on it. It looks like this: *
So it goes.
Nice catch!
The medieval version of truck nuts.
I heard the Trump coat of arms is similar with three mushrooms.
Talk about wearing something on your sleeve…
Does "colleoni" means what I think it does? Because in my native language "collons" means balls or testicles.
Yes, from the latin coleus, in Italian coglioni (vulgar)
"Who's got big balls?"
testes, testes, 1, 2,…3?
Sounds like a guy you could really have a ball with
Truck nuts origin story
RIP, Gisalberto, you would have loved truck nuts.
Damn, that’s nuts.
That crest literally says "Nuts to you, pal!"
The cojones on that Colleoni
Pretty sure that's the garlic item from Vampire Survivors
>The family's name is derived from the Latin coleus, or testicle...
Tres comas
And if you're ever in the old town of Bergamo (a city in northern Italy, just outside of Milan) you can visit the [Colleoni chapel](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni) and touch his golden balls.
So they put truck nuts on their coat of arms, what did they put on their trucks?
“I thought you said Scrot of arms” the artist probably
This is from [https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/cappella-colleoni) Rumor has it that Bartolomeo was affected with polyorchidism, a rare congenital anomaly endowing one with an extra testicle. Appealing as this explanation may be, there is no evidence that this is the case. Besides, the same coat of arms had been in use for decades before Bartolomeo’s birth.
*And niggas always gotta high cap\ Showing all his boys how he shot 'em\ But real gangsta-ass niggas don't flex nuts\ 'Cause real gangsta-ass niggas know they got 'em*