page_title: Square watermelon
section_title: Purpose and uses
hierarchical_section_title: Square watermelon / Purpose and uses
caption_attribution_description: English: Square or cube-shaped watermelon available for sale in Japan. (Cube Watermelon.)
context_page_description: Square or cube watermelons are watermelons grown into the shape of a cube. Cube watermelons are common in Japan, but they are purely ornamental and are often very expensive, with prices as high as $100.
context_section_description: Cube watermelons were intended to fit more compactly in fridges and be able to be cut more easily (without rolling). They were invented by graphic designer Tomoyuki Ono in 1978. He presented the watermelons in a gallery in Ginza, Tokyo. He also applied for and received a patent in the United States.
  The melons are grown in boxes and take the shape of the container. They tend to appeal to wealthy or fashionable consumers because in 2001 they cost anywhere from two to three times a normal watermelon (at about $83).
  Although cube melons were originally created with practicality in mind, the cost now is prohibitive. The cube shape of the watermelon can only be achieved at the expense of its contents. To retain the proper shape, cube melons must be harvested before they are ripe, rendering them inedible.
  Since the advent of the cube watermelon, other watermelon shapes have been introduced, such as hearts and pyramids.  They are also available in other countries now, such as in Germany.
caption: Cubic Japanese watermelon in market
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