Having squeezed one on to my pancakes yesterday, I will never look at a Lemon in the same way again after this snippet of news I came across. Shropshire auctioneers Brettells were preparing a  19^th cabinet for auction when a lemon was discovered at the back of a drawer.

It was no ordinary lemon, either. The inscribed message “Given by Mr P Lu Franchini Nov 4, 1739 to Miss E Baxter” showed that it was nearly 285 years old. Clearly Miss Baxter was not impressed enough with the lemon to use it but sentimental enough to keep it. I wonder what she thought of the gift and was there a custom of giving inscribed fruits in 18^th century England? Fruitful lines of research are emerging.

The lemon fetched £1,400 at auction, forty times more than the cabinet. It is a strange world!