No. Not a part of the environment. I’ll do the recap as soon as I can, but I’m on the road right now and recaps via phone tend to suck.
RECAP Yes: In original Everquest? (to the best of my knowledge) In more than one zone? (not zone specific) No: Is it edible? Is it an NPC? (but there could be a connection, depending on the npc) Is it Opal Darkbriar? Is it phallic in nature? Is it an item? Is it a zone or landmark feature in a zone? Does one look UP to see this? (in most cases, no) Is it part of the EQ environment?
No. Definitely not mandatory. As for rarity... over the course of my playing career, I probably encountered this but never really noticed it myself. I know that sounds odd, so I can explain when the game is done.
No. Not that I know of. I can check and will update this if I was wrong. EDIT: I checked out collection of load screens (I think it was from the anniversary or something) and did not see it in there.
No. I know it seems ridiculous right now, but the game should wrap up quickly once someone asks certain questions. It might be a little obscure (some players might not have noticed this thing or knew it existed), but it’s not an impossible answer.