It is up for historical debate whether investors involved with the Tulipmania, the Mississippi, and the South Sea bubbles knew that they were indeed bubbles. When considering the possible interpretations, the contextual debate behind these bubble events become quite fascinating because the answer is both ‘yes’ and ‘no’. While there are those who followed irrational exuberance going into these bubbles foolishly uninformed, not everybody joined irrationally. Some seasoned speculators knew there was a bubble but joined willingly with the intent to sell after riding the public wave until its peak. Did investors during the Tulipmania, the Mississippi and the South Sea bubbles know that these were indeed bubbles?
