This engraving is from the important account of one the most infamous financial meltdowns in history, known as the Mississippi Bubble incident. This engraved view depicts a dying tree, representing trade, with a putto holding an anchor in front of a palatial house. There are columns of verses in Dutch flanking the scene, printed from a separate plate. The overall message was that the economy was destroyed due to excessive speculation on the stock market. The full sheet with Dutch text measures 12.0 x 16.5".

John Law, a Scottish financier, established the Banque Generale (central bank) in France. He was then granted control of Louisiana and founded the Compagnie de la Louisiane d'Occident, in 1717. Law developed an elaborate plan to exploit the fabulous resources of the region, which quickly gained popularity and people rushed to invest, not just in France, but throughout Europe. This resulted in the development of several other overseas companies, such as the English South Sea Company and a number of smaller companies in the Dutch Republic. The share prices rose dramatically in a frenzy of speculation. In 1720 the bubble burst; speculators cashed in, caused a run on the shares, and the company went bankrupt. As a consequence of the failure, confidence in other similar companies failed, and thousands of individual investors across Europe were ruined.

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Condition: B+

A crisp impression on a sheet with an Amsterdam arms watermark, an extraneous vertical crease, light foxing at top, and marginal soiling.