Floraes Gecks-kap, 1637 1637 - 1720

Pieter Nolpe created this print called ‘Floraes Gecks-kap’ in 1637. It satirizes the speculative bubble in tulip bulbs that gripped the Netherlands at the time. The image creates meaning through a set of visual codes. At its center is a giant jester's cap, symbolizing folly, which shelters a crowd of people. This refers to the irrationality of the tulip mania. The flags with tulip emblems, along with the well-dressed figures and the architectural elements, serve to illustrate the participation of all social classes in this economic frenzy. Published during the height of the tulip craze, the print critiques the Dutch mercantile society, which momentarily valued a flower over more substantial investments. To fully grasp the image’s meaning, it helps to research economic and social histories from the period. These resources reveal that the tulip bubble reflected broader cultural anxieties about wealth, speculation, and social mobility in the Dutch Golden Age.