That lens skyrocketed in price due to incredible demand because it was quite a special lens. Originally they were $300 (Canadian price) when the GF-1 came out, but that went up to about $400 in the first half year, and about $500 in the first year! How often do you see a lens go UP in value 40% from its release price in the first year? Normally they'll go down a huge chunk after they've been out for a year.
That goes to show how worthy a lens it is. However, that was in the early days of the system, and the competition has now stepped up to plate with great lens designs. Leica finally released their 25mm f/1.4 Summilux for Micro Four-Thirds, which was a great lens in the Four-Thirds mount, Voigtlander released a 25mm f/0.95 Nokton, and Olympus has finally released some worthy m.Zuiko primes in the form of their new 12mm f/2.0 and 45mm f/1.8. So expect the price of the Lumix 20mm f/1.7 to start going down now...
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