The Tulip Broker Who Sold a Flower for a House
In 1637 Amsterdam, a single rare tulip bulb could cost more than a canal-side mansion, traded through futures contracts by people who never saw a flower. This is the story of how a botanical curiosity became the first speculative bubble, and the ordinary tradesmen who were ruined when it burst overnight.
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A plant virus created the flame-like streaks that made seventeenth-century tulips more valuable than gold.
Biological constraints on bulb growth naturally limited supply and fueled the Dutch speculative frenzy.
Common tulip prices rose twelvefold in two months as tradesmen risked years of labor on contracts.
The market collapsed in February sixteen thirty-seven when a routine Haarlem auction failed to attract bidders.
Dutch courts refused to enforce tulip contracts because they viewed the speculative trading as illegal gambling.
The legendary Semper Augustus bulb reached a valuation of ten thousand guilders before the market vanished.
- 01Intro1 min
- 02The Virus and the Value2 min
- 03The Rise of the Wind Trade2 min
- 04The Peak and the Breaking Point2 min
- 05The Legal Aftermath3 min
- 06Outro1 min
- Tulip mania - Wikipedia
- Tulip Mania
- Holland and Tulipmania - Amsterdam Tulip Museum
- Tulpenmanie – Wikipedia
- The Tulip mania - Exchange History
- Was Tulip Mania really the first great financial bubble?
- Tulpenmanie - Wikipedia
- Tulip mania: The flowers that cost more than houses
- Tulip Mania - Business Booms, Busts, & Bubbles
- Tulip Mania: How a Plant Virus Fueled a Speculative Frenzy
- A Brief History of Tulips
- History of the Tulip Mania
- Tulipmania: About the Dutch Tulip Bulb Market Bubble
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