Historical facts on pomegranates

Over 8,000 years ago, the pomegranate became one of the first cultivated fruits. Since then, the pomegranate has travelled the globe and impacted major civilizations throughout history. 500 years ago, Spanish missionaries planted the first pomegranate trees in the New World.
The pomegranate was cultivated in Egypt before the time of Moses. It was found in the Indus valley so early that there is a word in Sanskrit for pomegranate.
When Tutankhamen was entombed in the Valley of the Kings about 3 333 years ago, pomegranates were put in the tomb too, along with all his cherished possessions his people believed he would require on the “other side”.
According to Greek mythology, Persephone accepted a pomegranate from Hades and by doing so sealed her destiny and remained forever in the underworld. Some sources even claim that the Bible’s Eve was seduced with a pomegranate, not an apple.
It has been the subject of still-life paintings by artists such as Paul Cezanne (Still life with Pomegranates and Pears); Jan Davidsz de Heem and Eugene Henri Cauchois.
The pomegranate tree is native from Iran to the Himalayas in northern India and has been cultivated since ancient times throughout the Mediterranean region of Asia, Africa and Europe.
Pomegranate is one of the “seven kinds” mentioned in the Bible which Israel was blessed with long ago. The inner beauty of the pomegranate has inspired design since Biblical times, and there are some who believe it may be the fruit on the tree of life.
The pomegranate is significant in Jewish custom. Tradition holds that a pomegranate has 613 seeds to represent the 613 commandments in the Torah. The design of the pomegranate was woven into the high priest’s robes, and brass representations were part of the Temple’s pillars. It is mentioned six times inch Song of Solomon.