Twee tulpen met vlinder 1637

Jacob Marrel made this watercolour and gouache painting called 'Two Tulips with a Butterfly', part of a series of botanical illustrations, most likely sometime in the 17th century. Marrel was German but spent significant time in the Netherlands, and this work captures the feverish obsession with tulips that gripped Dutch society in what is now known as "Tulip Mania." During this brief period, single bulbs of rare varieties commanded exorbitant prices, exceeding the cost of houses or even entire estates. Paintings like this served as both scientific records and luxury items, commissioned by wealthy collectors eager to document and display their prized possessions. The meticulous detail and vibrant colours reflect not only the beauty of the flowers but also the social and economic forces that elevated them to objects of immense value. To understand this image fully, one can consult the detailed records of Dutch auction houses and the inventories of collectors that tell us so much about the economic history of the period.