/ · 1894 Brewer’s · J · Jemmy
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The head of a slaughtered sheep. There are “boiled jemmies,” “baked jemmies,” and “sanguinary jemmies” (raw sheep’s heads). The tradition is that James IV. of Scotland breakfasted on a sheep’s head just before the battle of Flodden Field (Sep. 9, 1513).
“Mr. Sikes made many pleasant witticisms on jemmies, a cant name for sheep’s heads, and also for an ingenious implement much used in his profession.”—Dickens: Oliver Twist.
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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.
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