Although these flowers are mostly associated with the Dutch, they did not originate in the Netherlands.
Historians believe that the raising of Tulips originated somewhere in Northern China around the 12th Century.
Later, they were cultivated and developed specifically for the pleasure of the Sultan Suleiman the First (1494-1566).
During the Turkish reign of Ahmed III (1703- 1730) it is believed that the Tulip reigned supreme as a symbol of wealth and prestige.
It was forbidden to buy or sell tulips outside of the capital.
The punishment was exile.
During the second half of the 16th century, news of the extraordinary flower reached Europe and seeds were the sent to the prefect ( Clusius) of the Royal Medicinal Gardens in Prague.
Some years later (1593), Clusius fled, for religious sanctuary, to The Netherlands, where he became curator of the Leiden Botanical Gardens.
Here, he proceeded to plant his beloved tulip collection, but was a selfish gardener, and refused to sell or share them with anyone.
The sudden and intense interest in these flowers, eventually sparked some folks to steal the bulbs.
Until 1630, the bulbs were grown and traded only between connoisseurs and scholars; but more commercially minded people soon noticed the ever increasing prices that were being paid for certain "variegated" tulips.
It wasn't long before the majority of the Dutch community became obsessed with these flowers.
The most expensive flower was the "Semper Augustus".
Those who could not afford the bulbs, settled instead for art, ceramics, and embroideries which featured the flowers.
The inevitable 'crash' of Tulip prices happened in 1637, when a group of sellers could not get the prices they wanted, and people everywhere came to their senses.
This is generally considered the first recorded speculative bubble.
Over the following decades, interest rose and fell, but the Dutch maintained a commercial devotion, and today export about 1.2 billion bulbs each year.
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