Question: What fruit was once so valuable that people would rent them to display at parties?
Answer: Pineapples, which were so rare in Europe and America in the 18th century that they became symbols of wealth and status. The price of one pineapple in the mid-1700s ran as high as $8,000 in today’s money, opulent enough that King Charles II had a painting made of his gardener presenting him a pineapple. You can see it at the link above.
