De Zilk Bulb Fields

Which painter has been at work here? Its lines, its colours, nothing has been left to chance. The 2000 or more residents of the little village of De Zilk make their living from the sale of their flowers and bulbs. However many visitors it attracts from all over the world, the painting is still just a sideshow. Fortunes were earned in these fields in centuries gone by. Speculation drove the price of tulip bulbs higher and higher. Until the bubble burst, in 1637. Dealers from countries all over the world had the change to learn salutary lessons from these events. But over and over again greed proves stronger than good sense. From the bell tower of the Church of the Sacred Heart (Heilige Hartkerk) the view over the fields is breathtaking. Here the smell of incense mingles with the sweet scent of the hyacinths in bloom. A solitatary figure bends over, in the middle of the field. It is the artist.