In the 17th century, the Netherlands experienced one of history’s most bizarre financial bubbles—Tulipmania.
What started as a passion for exotic tulips quickly spiraled into a speculative frenzy, with tulip bulbs selling for the price of a house!
Introduced from the Ottoman Empire, tulips became a status symbol among the Dutch elite. As demand soared, traders began buying and selling bulbs at wildly inflated prices.
By 1636, a single rare tulip variety, like the Semper Augustus, was worth as much as several years' wages.
At the peak of the craze, some people traded land, livestock, and even entire businesses for tulip bulbs—without ever planting them!
But in early 1637, the market crashed overnight when buyers stopped bidding. Prices plummeted, fortunes were lost, and Tulipmania became one of the first recorded economic bubbles in history.
Though the craze ended in disaster, tulips remain a beloved symbol of the Netherlands. Today, the country is the world’s top tulip producer—without the financial madness! 🌷