Fruit carving

[1] Fruit carving is included in Matthias Giegher's 1621 work Il Trinciante ("The Carver"), where he describes carving oranges and citrons into abstract patterns, shell-fish, four-legged animals and the Habsburgs' double-headed eagle, but the art was not common in Europe or North America until the 1980s when several books on the topic were published.

The annual Loi Krathong Festival occurs each November where people in Thailand float lamps and lanterns down a river to honor water spirits.

One legend is that one of the king's maids decorated her lantern with a watermelon carved with flower designs to impress him and that he was so pleased that he encouraged all Thai women to adopt the practice.

Mukimono began in ancient Japan in an effort to make dishes more appealing since the food was placed and served on an unglazed pottery plate, which had a rough look to it.

Chefs would cover the plate in leaves and would fold them into different designs in order to make the dish look better.

[5] This technique eventually turned into carving fruit that would also be placed on the plates to enhance the appearance of the dish.

Professional fruit carvers can also create centerpieces and displays for various events, such as parties and wedding receptions.

On a smaller scale, fruit carvers can present a dish with decorative garnishing to add an aesthetically pleasing experience to their viewers.