Sintegreef, The Earl of Laetare

In 1508 a ship carrying oranges, figs and raisins arrived in the port of the city of Antwerp. The townspeople, wary of the exotic sweet treats in fear they would make them sick, were apprehensive about buying the cargo. And this is where the legend starts; the Margrave of Antwerp, eager to boost trade in the city, ordered the cargo to be distributed among the people of Antwerp, knowing that if the goods were free, the people would accept them with eager hands. It would have given many Antwerpians a first taste of the sweet exotic treats that would become an integral part of the Golden Age in Antwerp.