The mid- and late-1980s were the years of Japan’s “bubble economy”, a time when the country was at its economic peak. It was awash with money, fuelling evermore conspicuous consumption, and Western scholars, spurred on by books like Ezra Vogel’s Japan as Number One (1979), sought to predict when Japan would surpass the United States as having the largest economy in the world. Of course, that story never came to pass. At the end of 1989, the Nikkei 225 stock market reached 39,000, a historic high. Three years later, more than half of that had been wiped out with the market at just 17,000 by the end of 1992. Why food security matters – and why we should all move to New Zealand However, while the good times rolled, Japan enjoyed unprecedented wealth. Here are five crazy facts from that time. The Imperial Palace in Tokyo was worth more than all of California View this post on Instagram Exquisite shot of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo The current Imperial Palace is located on the former site of Edo Castle, a large park area surrounded by moats and massive stone walls in the center of Tokyo, a short walk from Tokyo Station. It is the residence of Japan's Imperial Family. . : @stu2610 . #japan #japan #japantravel #japantrip #japaneseculture #japanesebeauty #japanesestyle #japanfocus #japancastle #japandailies #japanrevealed #japantravelphoto #discoverjapan #explorejapan #japanlovers #moodygrams #igersjapan #instajapan #travelgram #travelguide #travelersnotebook #travelfromhome A post shared by Japan Travelers (@japan.travelers) on May 5, 2020 at 4:37am PDT Between 1956 and 1986, the price of land increased by as much as 5,000 per cent in Japan. At the peak of the bubble economy, Tokyo real estate could sell for as much as US$139,000 per square foot, which was nearly 350 times as much as equivalent space in Manhattan. By that reckoning, the Imperial Palace in Tokyo was worth as much as the entire US state of California. The Japanese property market was worth four times more than the US property market View this post on Instagram Today, the state of emergency was lifted in all remaining prefectures in Japan We hope this positive trend will continue and that we can welcome you in our beautiful country again soon! Until then, stay safe and dream about your next trip to Japan! • • • #traveltokyo #tokyosunset #webringjapantoyou #skylinetokyo #skylinephotography #architecture #japanculture #streetphotographer #beautifuldestinations #traveltojapan #beautifuljapan #japanwondertravel #beautifulstreet #streetsofjapan #citytriptokyo A post shared by Japan Wonder Travel (@japan_wonder_travel) on May 25, 2020 at 3:29am PDT It wasn’t just Tokyo that was super expensive, though. Despite Japan occupying the equivalent of only four per cent of the land mass of the entire US – Japan is about the same size as California – the value of the Japanese property market was four-times greater than that of the USA. Japan’s top 6 pristine island escapes Land-price inflation was so distorted that land constituted 65 per cent of Japan’s national wealth, compared to just 2.5 per cent for the UK at the time. Golf club membership could cost millions – and became a tradeable asset worth a combined US$200 billion View this post on Instagram 2019三井住友VISA太平洋マスターズ 2nd Round。6番ホールpar4で太平洋クラブ所属・小斉平優和プロのショット。今日も富士山が綺麗です！ 6番ホールは撮影可能エリアがあります！ @japangolftour @yuwa_k_official @taiheiyoclub_official #三井住友visa太平洋マスターズ #三井住友visaカード #tbs #太平洋クラブ #御殿場 #太平洋クラブ御殿場 #富士山 #mountfuji #golfinjapan #taiheiyoclub A post shared by 西島太一 (@taichi_nishijima223) on Nov 14, 2019 at 9:20pm PST As the Japanese economy prospered there developed an increasing appreciation for the sport of golf. With their aura of exclusivity, golf club memberships were in high demand – and came at attendant high prices. It has been estimated that the value of club membership, as a tradeable commodity, shot up by 400 per cent between 1982 and 1989 – and then an additional 190 per cent in 1989 at the height of the bubble. STYLE Edit: Would you golf in J. Lindeberg's purple animal print gear? Membership of the most exclusive country clubs could cost as much as ¥400 million (US$3.7 million) – the cost of entire golf courses in other countries. As a result, the Nikkei Golf Club Membership Index was created to monitor the value of golf club memberships – and at its zenith the total market value of memberships was estimated at an astounding US$200 billion. Japanese companies went on a spending spree described as an ‘economic Pearl Harbour’ View this post on Instagram The City Within the City. Windows and tucked away terraces as far as the eye can see. A post shared by Rockefeller Center (@rockefellercenter) on Feb 12, 2020 at 9:01am PST In 1985, Japan, France, West Germany, the UK and the US signed the Plaza Accord, which aimed to lower the value of the dollar in relation to the Yen and German Deutsche Mark. The intention was to make American exports cheaper, easing America’s trade deficit. The plan worked, but almost too well. With the dollar so weak, Japanese companies began snapping up any US assets they could get their hands on. New York’s Rockefeller Center was bought by Mitsubishi Group, while on the other coast a Japanese consortium bought the historic Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles and Hollywood studio Columbia Pictures was bought by Sony. Such ostentatious spending led American radio broadcaster Paul Harvey to warn of an “economic Pearl Harbour” if his country did not shape up. 6 ways Japanese women spend their money differently to South Koreans A restaurant owner used a ceramic toad to foretell the movements of Japan’s stock exchange View this post on Instagram /: , Money frog is one of the most powerful Feng Shui objects that helps attract prosperity and is believed to protect us against any misfortunes Place one in your home or business to protect and expand your wealth Good health and Good fortune : Send a DM WhatsApp: +2348164554052 or Link in Bio Telegram: @thewealthplace or Link in Bio #hustlersquaregang #chakrastones #healthandwealth #wealth #fengshuilifestyle #naijabrandchicktradefair #hustlersquare #fengshuijewelry #fengshuitips #sacralchakra #naijabrandchick #fengshuiliving #dailyzzzdaywed #crystalstore #chakras #chakracrystal #chakrabracelet #wealthbuilding #chakrabalancing #fengshuicharms #moneyfrog #moneytoad #moneymagnet #wealthtoad A post shared by , (@thewealthplace) on Apr 15, 2020 at 9:55am PDT Though she died relatively unannounced in 2014, Nui Onoue was once a figure of fame, and later infamy. Ostensibly a humble restaurant owner in Osaka, Onoue had forged certificates of deposits and convinced the Industrial Bank of Japan and its affiliates to lend her up to ¥240 billion (US$2.2 billion). The result was Onoue became the largest player in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, the largest in the world at the time. Reportedly, she bought as much as ¥120 billion (US$1.1 billion) of stock in one day, owning millions of shares in prestigious companies such as Fuji Heavy Industries and Toshiba and became the largest shareholder in the Industrial Bank of Japan itself. Known as the “Dark Lady of Osaka”, Onoue was supposedly highly accurate in her stock market predictions and held occult midnight ceremonies in her restaurant, beneath the watchful glare of a ceramic toad (a symbol meant to attract wealth), that would be attended by high-powered bankers seeking to divine where they should invest next. Which universities are China’s billionaires sending their children to? When the bubble economy burst, Onoue’s fortunes went with it. As the market plunged, Onoue was forced to borrow more to cover her existing losses. After collecting more fake deposit certificates, her fraud was uncovered. In the five years before 1991, Onoue borrowed ¥2.8 trillion (US$26 billion), which attracted interest payments of about ¥130 billion (US$1.2 billion). With notable understatement, the Japanese court trying her declared that these amounts were “extremely unusual” for an individual. It was the largest investment fraud case in Japanese history. Want more stories like this? Sign up here . Follow STYLE on Facebook , Instagram , YouTube and Twitter .