true0pog

I have a new addition to my library, a facsimilie of “Confusions de Confusiones”. This was the first book ever written about the stock market. Jose de la Vega, a Spanish trader & moral philosopher during the South Sea Bubble in Amsterdam’s exchange published it in 1688. It describes options, buying on margin, market manipulation and, most interestingly, market psychology. Despite being the first book to explain a stock exchange, it was relatively unknown until an essay was published about it in the late 19th century. While a first edition from 1688 sold at auction for $300,000, if you’re lucky you can find facsimile copies from the late 19th/early 20th century - limited runs that likely were owned for the same reason you will - a trader thought it was cool. This copy is from the 1920s. The first translation of the book into English was not until 1957. If any of you are doubting that there is nothing new under the sun when it comes to markets, let me show you a few of the passages… 🧵