Bunghole

History and usage

Bungholes were first used on wooden barrels, and were typically bored by the purchaser of the barrel using a brace and bit. Bungholes can be bored in either head (end) of a barrel or in one of the staves (side). With the bung removed, a tapered faucet can be attached to aid with dispensing. When barrels full of a commodity were shipped, the recipient would often bore new bungholes of the most suitable size and placement rather than remove the existing bung. Wooden barrels manufactured by specialty firms today usually are bored by the maker with suitable bungholes, since the hobbyists who purchase them for the making of beer, wine, and fermented foods often do not have a suitable brace and bit.

Closed-head steel barrels and drums now used for shipment of chemicals and petroleum products have a standardized bunghole arrangement, with one 2 inch NPT and one 3/4 inch NPT threaded bunghole on opposite sides of the top head. Some steel barrels are also equipped with a 2-inch threaded bunghole on the side.

In literature

A notable use of the term occurs in Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet: While holding the skull of the dead court jester, Hamlet wonders:

Slang usage

Usage of the term as a slang word for the anus dates back to at least the 17th century, as shown in Thomas Urquhart's translation of Gargantua by François Rabelais, first published in 1653. "... I say and maintain, that of all torcheculs, arsewisps, bumfodders, tail-napkins, bunghole cleansers, and wipe-breeches, there is none in the world comparable to the neck of a goose ..."

In popular culture

• The word was popularized in the MTV cartoon series Beavis and Butt-Head, where the term "bunghole" is used as both a personal insult and slang for anus. In his Cornholio persona, Beavis says, "I need TP for my bunghole."
• U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson was recorded using the word "bunghole" while ordering slacks over the phone.

In the meat industry

Bung dropper is a device inserted into the rectum of a slaughtered animal, mostly of a pig, to separate it from carcass during the dressing process.

References

References

1. [http://www.brickfind.co.uk/bricks.html History of Bricks from brickfind.com website] {{webarchive. link. (2012-03-31)
2. Shakespeare, William. Jenkins, Harold, editor. ''Hamlet''. Act V, sc. 1, lines 199-207. Arden Shakespeare (1882). {{ISBN. 9781903436677 P. 387
3. [[Wikisource:Gargantua/Chapter XIII]]
4. Schogol, Jeff. (2024-02-27). "We salute the brave men who took part in – and named – ‘Operation Bunghole’".
5. Davies, Madeleine. (2021-09-29). "Don’t Laugh, But Really: What Is a Bunghole?".
6. Damiani, Joanna. (2022-08-23). "The 10 Best Beavis & Butt-head Quotes".
7. (2016-12-27). "LBJ Orders Some New Haggar Pants {{!}} Miller Center".
8. (25 June 2009). "NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN SLAUGHTERING, PRE-CUTTING AND CUTTING – INFLUENCE ON SAFETY AND QUALITY OF MEAT". Scientific Journal "Meat Technology".