Rigging Monkey refers to a crewmember of a sailing vessel whose primary responsibility is to climb the mast

Mast (sailing)

The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...

, usually with the assistance of a boatswain

Boatswain

A boatswain , bo's'n, bos'n, or bosun is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. The boatswain supervises the other unlicensed members of the ship's deck department, and typically is not a watchstander, except on vessels with small crews...

's chair, to work on the rigging

Rigging

Rigging is the apparatus through which the force of the wind is used to propel sailboats and sailing ships forward. This includes masts, yards, sails, and cordage.-Terms and classifications:...

 of the ship

Ship

Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...

.

The rigging monkey would be sent aloft to repair damaged sails, straighten out lines that had become "fouled", or tangled, or to assist in the raising or lowering of sail

Sail

A sail is any type of surface intended to move a vessel, vehicle or rotor by being placed in a wind—in essence a propulsion wing. Sails are used in sailing.-History of sails:...

s.

In the days of tall-ship sailing, the nautical term "monkey" was used to refer to anything of small size on the ship. Jackets or coats that were cut to a shorter length to allow freedom of movement in the rigging were called monkey jackets, which were worn by the rigging monkey. Powder monkeys were usually small boys that would run black powder from the powder room to the cannon

Cannon

A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...

s on the ship, and their small size allowed them to negotiate the narrow passages within the ship.

The term still applies to modern sailors who climb their masts to make repairs to their rigs. Safety precautions, such as wearing a harness or sitting in a boatswain

Boatswain

A boatswain , bo's'n, bos'n, or bosun is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. The boatswain supervises the other unlicensed members of the ship's deck department, and typically is not a watchstander, except on vessels with small crews...

's chair (a fabric seat that is tied to a halyard

Halyard

In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line that is used to hoist a sail, a flag or a yard. The term halyard comes from the phrase, 'to haul yards'...

) are standard procedure, especially on larger boats.

See also

• Able seaman
  Able seaman
  An able seaman is an unlicensed member of the deck department of a merchant ship. An AB may work as a watchstander, a day worker, or a combination of these roles.-Watchstander:...
  
  
• Steel monkey
  Steel monkey
  Steel monkey is a nickname used to refer to workers on high scaffolding or other aerial construction rigs. It is possible that the term developed from the similar term rigging monkey, used on large sailing ships to refer to crewmembers whose responsibilities included climbing the ship's mast.-Other...