Actually, if you go way back, when gold and silver were money, the exploitation of big deposits could affect inflation as new gold or silver entered the market. So, in that regard, people had historic precedents that acted to shape their future expectation (more precious metals rapidly entering the market = greater inflation).
Even the relative value of gold and silver (the ratio between them) could fluctuate depending the nature of the deposits found... if you found more silver, gold would go up in relation to silver...
In the fiat money world, things are somewhat different because there are multiple strategies to mitigate (or conceal) inflation.
Has anyone read Faust Part I and II? More people should read that in today's world. It is a counsel or forewarning about Debt and basically money printing (one part of it at least).
I haven't. I guess I need to find some time to do so.