"The apple of love" is a mysterious, poetic, intriguing and ambiguous expression. In any case, there is no consensus on the interpretation of its meaning. It turns out that different interpretations are possible.
What kind of fruit is this?
There is no consensus on this score. On the one hand, the phrase "love apple" refers to an apple. On the other hand, there is a fairly well-known version, according to which … tomatoes were called the "apple of love". And it is not without reason. Tomatoes or tomatoes were introduced to Europe in the 16th century from the American continent. And they were really called apples, or rather "pomí del Peru", or the Peruvian apple - this is how the Spaniards christened them for their external resemblance to the fruits they know.
At first, they were considered an ornamental plant, the fruits of which are inedible, but at 18 Europeans were already happy to eat them. In the UK, these fruits were known as "apples of love" due to the fact that the Italian expression pomo d'oro, which translates as "golden apple", was misunderstood as pomo d'amore and translated as "apple of love" …
John Gerard, an Englishman, a connoisseur of medicinal plants, was one of those who first decided to grow tomatoes in Europe.
And still an apple
Still, the apple itself is also quite consistent with the concept of "love apple". The evidence for this is abundant.
The rounded fruit symbolized unity and integrity. Many peoples associated the red color of its skin with love and passion. Apple flowers - pinkish-white and delicate, were used to decorate the newlywed as a symbol of the rapidly passing youth and innocence.
In ancient Greece, the apple had a special attitude. The mention of this fruit is now and then found in myths. It was the apple with the inscription “The Most Beautiful” that became the root cause of the Trojan War - hence the well-known expression “apple of discord”. Gaia presented Hera with an apple on the day of her marriage to Zeus, and Hercules was also supposed to bring the apples of the Hesperides.
The apple also played an important role in ceremonies and rituals. It was used to prepare ritual dishes at celebrations in honor of the goddess Artemis, the eternal virgin. Newlyweds in Athens, before lying on the wedding bed, shared an apple among themselves. The proposed apple was perceived as a sign of love.
In the Middle Ages, the witchcraft power of apples was not forgotten. An apple cut across and having a five-pointed core cut was associated by alchemists with five basic elements. In medieval engravings depicting the Fall, it is the apple that Eve holds out to Adam.
Accordingly, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, from which this fruit was plucked, was depicted in the form of an apple tree.
The fruit was used to prepare love and love potions, and modern sorcerers, following tradition, also use the apple in their love spell rituals.
