The History of Pineapples (& 8 Pineapple Home Decor Items)

We just returned home from a fun trip to Charleston, SC, to celebrate our 10th anniversary. (You’ll hear plenty more about it soon.) One of my favorite parts of traveling isn’t necessarily the sights or attractions—don’t get me wrong, those are amazing too—but, it’s the stories we hear along the way. Charleston is chock-full of stories. With so much history, it’s impossible not to be. One little story we heard in passing during this trip happened to involve pineapples. Specifically, it was about the history behind pineapple decor.

I’ve always heard that pineapples symbolize warmth, welcome, and hospitality. I’m sure you’ve probably heard that too. That’s why you often see them above doorways or on porches. But I was fascinated to hear a story that delved deeper into the history of pineapples in home decor, and where that tradition originated.

You see, in Charleston in the 1700s when shipping was popular, women were not allowed to entertain if their husbands weren’t at home. (They were their husband’s property, after all. Cue eye roll.) When their husbands would return from a trip, they would bring all sorts of exotic souvenirs home, including fruit. One of these exotic tropical fruits was the pineapple, and it became customary to stake a pineapple in your front yard to notify your friends and neighbors that your husband had returned home and you could once again entertain.

After hearing this story, we were walking along King Street and ventured into Anthropologie where I spotted this brass pineapple candle, and wouldn’t you know, I just had to buy it.

I know it wasn’t made by a local artisan or anything, but it suddenly had some relevance to our trip and I loved it, so I snatched it up. Plus it smells amazing. (You can buy the same one here.) I thought it would be fun to round up 8 Pineapple Home Decor Items to share with you in case you want to incorporate this fun, summery fruit into your home too.