A COCO DE MER NUT (LODOICEA MALDIVICA), from the Seychelles, unpolished and retaining fibres

Dimensions: 28cm wide, 25cm deep,14cm high

Coco de mer, meaning 'coconut of the sea' and sometimes known as a ‘love nut’ – for obvious reasons – is one of nature’s true curiosities. Here are five fascinating facts about the largest seed on the planet:

1. They are found on only two islands in the Seychelles and are now considered endangered. The fruit requires 8 – 10 years to mature
2. The plant holds 11 botanic records – with the world’s ‘heaviest’, ‘largest’ and ‘slowest growing’ featuring among these
3. The seed used to be known as the Maldive coconut because they would fall into the sea in the Seychelles and drift eastwards towards the shores of the Maldives, where they were used in medicine and traded for their perceived magical qualities. The kernel was thought to be an aphrodisiac
4. Before the discovery of the Seychelles in the 18th Century, sailors used to think that the nut came from a gigantic tree at the bottom of the ocean. They were prized for their rarity, often being polished and adorned with gold and precious stones, or used to make bowls.
5. When General Gordon visited the Seychelles in 1881, he believed that the island where the coco de mer trees grow was the original Garden of Eden, with the coco de mer nut being the fruit from the forbidden tree

***Given the history of this amazing nut, we have included in both the LAND and SEA sections of the sale!