Ever wondered where this saying came from?
In the days before there were cameras one’s image was either sculpted or painted. A painting may show a man standing behind a desk with one arm behind his back while others showed both legs and both arms. Prices charged by painters were not based on how many people were to be painted, but by how many limbs were to be painted. Hands and arms are more difficult to paint therefore painting them would cost the buyer more.
Hence the expression, ‘it cost an arm and a leg.’
