A Roman emperor tried to freeze every price in the empire by decree

Facing runaway inflation from a debased currency, Emperor Diocletian issued the Edict on Maximum Prices in AD 301, fixing ceiling prices for thousands of goods and wages for dozens of jobs across the empire, with death threatened for overcharging. Merchants responded by hoarding goods or selling secretly on the black market rather than at a loss, shortages spread, and the edict was largely abandoned within years — an early, costly lesson in outlawing inflation with price controls alone.

— Emperor Diocletian, Edictum de Pretiis Rerum Venalium (Edict on Maximum Prices) — AD 301