Tulip mania is the name commonly given to the 1637 Dutch trading mania often called the first recorded speculative bubble.
During the Dutch Golden Age, rare tulip varieties became highly desirable among wealthy collectors. Contracts for bulbs were traded, and prices for some varieties rose dramatically in late 1636 and early 1637. In February 1637, an auction failed to attract expected buyers, and confidence weakened quickly.
Popular retellings portray ordinary people selling everything to buy tulip bulbs, but historians debate how widespread the speculation was and how severe its economic consequences became. Many transactions involved contracts for future delivery rather than actual bulbs, and the episode did not produce a countrywide financial collapse comparable to later stock-market crashes.
Tulip mania is still relevant to crash history because it illustrates recurring patterns: scarcity narratives, leverage, rising prices, and the belief that another buyer will pay more. The South Sea Bubble of 1720 was a later, more clearly documented company-share crisis.