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The benevolent and enlightened King Sejong the Great had once condemned a eunuch to severe punishment just because of a watermelon. Oranges were the driving force behind the Renaissance in the Italian Peninsula. The roots of the Sicilian Mafia can be found in lemon farms. These stories, however outlandish they may seem, are all based on historical facts. Following the stories hidden in the humblest of fruits leads one to interesting sides of history and culture in Asia. The ACC’s “Asia Culture and Art Experience” program, which showcased popular lecture series like the “Asia Rice Road,” “Bread Road,” and “Coffee Road” last year, returns once more with “Asia Fruit Road” under the title “ACC Theme Tour on Asian Food, Clothing, and Shelter.” This year’s “Asia Fruit Road” lecture program follows the transmission of fruits along the Silk Road and examines how fruits organically connect the history and culture of Asian countries. This year’s program also includes a dinnertime lecture compared to the previous sessions.

This lecture was like a fruit basket, filled with stories courtesy of the food culture writer Yun Deok-no. As a newspaper reporter for 25 years, Yun has engaged with the food culture of various countries and has discovered and introduced interesting food-related stories to the general public, such as Roman history through food, delicacies found from the history of war, and how the fish-shaped bun came to be. In the book “World History through Fruits,” Yun details how the fruits came to be, their history, and the culture associated with fruits.

• Lecturer Yun Deok-no | Food culture writer

  “Generally speaking, when we talk about history, we talk about political and economic history. But the things we eat and wear are also part of history.
  One such part is fruits. We live in an age where fruits are so abundant, but things were very different only a few decades ago. Can you imagine what things might have been like in ancient times? I think it is very meaningful to examine how the history of our living culture has changed the world through fruits.”

Fruit has been an important object of trade from ancient times to the present day. In pursuit of rare and scarce fruits, people have embarked on voyages of exploration that have inadvertently changed the course of history. The “Asia Fruit Road,” which explores the unfamiliar history of fruit, is presented in six lectures on three topics. From “The Orange Road to Heaven” to “Why did Peaches and Apples travel along the East-West Line?” and “Treasures of the East: Grapes, Watermelons, and Pomegranates,” the titles of the lectures themselves are quite intriguing. As one savor each of these lectures, one will see the fruits in a new light beyond a simple, delicious morsel, in various flavors, aromas, and colors, just like the fruits themselves.

Did orange come from Asia?

As we find ourselves at the cusp of summer, one of the most common fruits in the grocery store is orange. Everyone loves oranges because of their juiciness, sweet and sour flavor, and relatively low price. Most people think of oranges as a Western fruit imported from Europe or the United States in Korea, but surprisingly, oranges originate from Asia! Historically, oranges grew in northern India, southern China, Southwest Asia, and Southeast Asia. Surprisingly, oranges originated from the East, but even more surprising is that they served as a stepping stone for the Renaissance.

Before modernity, oranges were used as medicine rather than food. This usage allowed merchants who traded in oranges to make much money, such as the Medici family, who led the Renaissance in Florence, Italy. Members of the early Medici family made their fortune in the orange trade, and the family eventually became the rulers of Florence and the leading force behind the Renaissance, so it is not unrealistic to think that oranges were the stepping stone for the Renaissance.

Lemon juices and the 18th-century struggle against scurvy
Did the Sicilian Mafia start from the lemon farms?

Lemons have an interesting history as well. In the 18th century, when the British navy set sail on a long voyage to fight the Spanish in colonial wars, many of the sailors died of scurvy. Scurvy is a disease caused by vitamin C deficiency. After a naval doctor discovered that citrus fruits were effective in treating scurvy, sailors in the British fleet were required to eat lemon and lime during their voyages. It is said that drinking lemon juice prevented scurvy and made the British Navy an invincible force. Lemons thus helped to make Britain a maritime power in the 19th century.

The British imported most of the lemons for their navy and ships from Sicily, Italy. As the demand for lemons grew, Italy in the 19th century enjoyed a boom in the lemon trade. Naturally, Sicilian lemon farmers were making a fortune, but this boom also had side effects. Lemon thieves became rampant, and lemon farmers needed an organization to protect themselves. This is where the gabellotti, or overseers, came into play, and they are said to have been the forerunners of the Sicilian Mafia. From this, one could surmise that the humble lemon became a factor in the rise of the Mafia, a surprising historical fact captured in this small fruit.

Why did King Sejong the Great react wrathfully
to a watermelon thief?

For many people in Korea, summer is the season of watermelons. Watermelons actually originated from Africa and were introduced to Korea in the late Goryeo Period. During the Joseon Period, watermelons were quite rare, so much so that the Veritable Records of King Sejong notes the price of watermelon as equivalent to five mal (a traditional unit equivalent to 18 kg). Watermelons were, in other words, worth their weight in gold.

During the reign of King Sejong the Great, a court eunuch was caught trying to steal this precious fruit. The eunuch was promptly hauled off, given a hundred lashes, and exiled to Gyeongsang Province, a shockingly severe series of punishments. The eunuch had caused the benevolent and enlightened king to fly into a rage because watermelons were so much more than simple fruits. As time went by, watermelon farming began to spread, but even during the late Joseon Period, watermelons were dear enough that only the members of the aristocracy could enjoy them. To think that one of the most respected kings of Korea flew into a rage because of a watermelon... With this in mind, one can savor watermelon’s sweet and refreshing flavor that much more this summer.

The “chamoe” (Korean melon), a symbol of fertility and prosperity

Another popular summer fruit is chamoe (Korean melon), which is associated with its historical tidbit. The “Painting of the Royal Procession to Hwaseong on Eight-panel Folding Screen,” which depicts the royal procession of King Jeongjo of Joseon, is inscribed with chamoe decorations. Bottles and pots taking the form of the fruit can widely be found among Goryeo celadon and Joseon porcelain, and many of the retainers who helped found the Goryeo and Joseon were said to have been born with the energy of the fruit. These suggest that chamoe was a special fruit and a symbol of good fortune to Koreans.

Chamoe, as a cultivar, is native to Korea and can only be found there. It has served as the symbol of prosperity and fertility since the old days. If watermelons were fruits of the aristocracy and the rich, chamoe was the fruit of the people, regardless of one’s social standing. In summer, when food was not plentiful, it is said that people experiencing poverty ate the affordable chamoe instead. This cultivar is said to only survive in Korea, so it can truly be described as a Korean fruit.

• Choe Seong-rye | Attendee, Dong-gu, Gwangju

  “I’ve been eating oranges all my life and had no idea where they came from, so it is fascinating to learn that they traveled so far and that they were used as a valuable medicinal ingredient or spice, much like pepper. Now I know there is so much history behind this fruit.”

• Choe Seung-mi | Attendee, Seo-gu, Gwangju

  “It’s really informative because the lecture teaches us things we didn’t know about fruits from both East and West. I think I’ll appreciate oranges and watermelons more when I eat them in the future.”

The “ACC Asia Food, Clothing, Residential Culture Tour - Asia Fruit Road” still has four lectures left until June 11. From peaches and apples to grapes and pomegranates, don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn more about different fruits by signing up for the lectures in advance. There will also be delicious fruit tastings between the lectures. Attendees will learn the stories behind the fruits they didn’t know before, and they will be able to appreciate even the most ordinary fruits.