While the concept of printing can be traced back centuries before, Johannes Gutenberg’s invention of the printing press in the mid-15th century marks a pivotal moment in human history. It wasn’t just an incremental improvement; Gutenberg’s press was a transformative innovation that democratized knowledge, fueled societal change, and irrevocably altered the course of civilization. Although earlier forms of printing existed, particularly in China, Gutenberg’s ingenious combination of technologies and processes truly launched the age of mass communication.
Early Forays into Printing: Eastern Pioneers
Long before Gutenberg, the seeds of printing were sown in the East. China boasts the oldest known printed texts, originating in the first millennium A.D. Among these remarkable artifacts is The Diamond Sutra, a Buddhist scripture dating back to around 868 A.D. during China’s Tang Dynasty. This book, discovered in Dunhuang, stands as the earliest complete printed book known to exist.
The Diamond Sutra and other texts from Dunhuang, including calendars, mathematical charts, and educational materials, were created using woodblock printing. This technique involved meticulously carving text and images in reverse onto wooden blocks, inking the surface, and then pressing it onto paper. This method, also adopted in Japan and Korea, allowed for the reproduction of texts, but it was laborious and each block was limited to a single page. Metal block printing also emerged in this era, often used for religious texts, showcasing early experimentation with different materials.
Bi Sheng’s Moveable Type: A Step Towards Efficiency
A significant advancement came with Bi Sheng, a Chinese artisan from Yingshan, Hubei, who lived from approximately 970 to 1051 A.D. Bi Sheng is credited with inventing movable type. Instead of carving entire pages onto blocks, he created individual characters from baked clay. These characters could be arranged and rearranged to form different texts, offering a more flexible and reusable printing system.
Bi Sheng’s clay type characters were set in an iron frame and pressed against an iron plate to print. The Dream Pool Essays, written in 1086 by the scientist Shen Kuo, provides the earliest account of Bi Sheng’s invention. Shen Kuo noted that Bi Sheng chose baked clay over wood because wood was prone to uneven texture, absorbed moisture readily, and posed challenges with ink adhesion. Baked clay, on the other hand, offered a more consistent surface and was easier to clean for reuse.
During the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279 A.D.), the widespread availability of books, facilitated by printing technologies, contributed to the rise of a scholarly class and a meritocratic civil service. Large book collections also became symbols of wealth and status.
Wang Chen and Wood Type Refinement
Despite Bi Sheng’s clay movable type, wood type experienced a resurgence in 1297 with Wang Chen, a magistrate of Ching-te. Wang Chen printed Nung Shu, a treatise on agriculture, using an improved wood type system. He developed methods to enhance the durability and precision of wood type. Furthermore, Wang Chen introduced a revolving table for typesetters, significantly improving the efficiency and speed of typesetting.
Nung Shu is considered the world’s first mass-produced book. Its influence extended beyond China, reaching Europe and documenting numerous Chinese innovations that were later mistakenly attributed to European inventors. Wang Chen’s refined woodblock type method remained a standard printing technique in China for centuries.
Johannes Gutenberg: The European Printing Revolution
It was roughly 150 years after Wang Chen’s advancements that the printing press emerged in Europe, thanks to the ingenuity of Johannes Gutenberg. Gutenberg, a goldsmith and inventor exiled from Mainz, Germany, began experimenting with printing around 1440 in Strasbourg (then part of the Holy Roman Empire). Returning to Mainz by 1450, he had perfected his printing machine, ready for commercial application: the Gutenberg press.
The Groundbreaking Gutenberg Press
Gutenberg’s genius lay in adapting and combining existing technologies and innovating new ones to create a truly efficient and scalable printing system. Key to his invention was the shift from wood to metal for type. He developed the European version of movable type, but with crucial improvements.
To produce type in large quantities, Gutenberg employed replica casting. He created letter molds in reverse from brass, and then used these molds to cast numerous identical letterforms from molten lead. Researchers suggest he might have utilized a sand-casting system to create these metal molds. The letters were meticulously designed to fit together uniformly, creating straight lines and consistent columns of text.
Gutenberg also recognized that existing inks, designed for woodblocks, were unsuitable for metal type. He formulated a new oil-based ink that adhered effectively to metal surfaces and produced clear, legible prints. Finally, he ingeniously adapted a winepress, commonly used for pressing grapes and olives, to apply even pressure to the printing paper, ensuring consistent and high-quality impressions.
The Gutenberg Bible: A Landmark Publication
To finance his ambitious project, Gutenberg borrowed money from Johannes Fust. In 1452, Fust joined Gutenberg as a partner, and together they embarked on producing books. They initially printed calendars, pamphlets, and other short printed materials.
Around 1452, Gutenberg achieved a monumental feat: the printing of the Gutenberg Bible. It is estimated that he produced approximately 180 copies of this massive 1,300-page Bible, with around 60 printed on vellum (calfskin parchment). Each page featured 42 lines of text in Gothic type, arranged in double columns and with some letters highlighted in color.
The production of the Gutenberg Bible was a massive undertaking, requiring around 300 distinct molded letter blocks and 50,000 sheets of paper. Many fragments of these Bibles survive today, and 21 complete copies, including four vellum copies, are still extant, testaments to the durability and impact of Gutenberg’s work.
Gutenberg’s Later Years and Schoffer’s Advancement
In 1455, financial troubles led to Fust foreclosing on Gutenberg. A subsequent lawsuit resulted in Gutenberg losing his printing equipment to Fust and Peter Schoffer of Gernsheim, a former calligrapher in their partnership.
While Gutenberg is believed to have continued printing after this setback, possibly producing the Catholicon, a Latin dictionary, in 1460, his printing endeavors largely ceased after this point, perhaps due to declining eyesight. He passed away in 1468.
Peter Schoffer proved to be an exceptionally skilled printer, arguably surpassing Gutenberg in technical expertise and typography. Within two years of acquiring Gutenberg’s press, Schoffer produced a highly praised edition of The Book of Psalms. This edition was notable for its three-color title page and the use of varying typefaces within the book. It also marked a historical first by including a colophon, a section detailing publication information, in a printed book. Ten copies of this significant edition of The Book of Psalms are known to have survived.
The Rapid Spread of Printing Across Europe
The printing trade expanded rapidly, fueled by German printers who had trained with Gutenberg and his contemporaries. These individuals disseminated their knowledge and skills, establishing printing presses throughout Europe.
Italy was the next major center for printing after Germany, with the printing press arriving in 1465. By 1470, Italian printers had established a thriving trade in printed materials. German printers were invited to set up presses at the Sorbonne in Paris in 1470, initially focusing on producing textbooks for students. By 1476, more German printers had moved to Paris, establishing private printing businesses.
Spain welcomed German printers in Valencia in 1473, and printing spread to Barcelona by 1475. Portugal followed suit in 1495, inviting printers to Lisbon.
In England, William Caxton, an Englishman who had lived in Bruges (present-day Belgium), introduced printing in 1476. Caxton learned printing in Cologne in 1471 to establish a press in Bruges and publish his own translations. Upon his return to England, he set up a press in Westminster Abbey, serving as a printer for the monarchy until his death in 1491.
The Printing Press: A Catalyst for Global Change
The widespread adoption of the printing press revolutionized communication and had profound societal impacts. The increased accessibility and distribution of information challenged established power structures in Europe.
In 1501, Pope Alexander VI attempted to control the burgeoning print industry by threatening excommunication for anyone printing manuscripts without Church approval. However, this attempt at censorship proved futile. Within two decades, the writings of reformers like Martin Luther and John Calvin were widely disseminated, realizing Alexander’s worst fears and fueling the Protestant Reformation.
Further challenging traditional authority, Nicolaus Copernicus published De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres) in 1543, presenting his heliocentric theory, which was deemed heretical by the Church.
By 1605, the first official newspaper, Relation, was printed and distributed in Strasbourg. Newspapers proliferated across Europe, solidifying the printing press’s role in promoting literacy, education, and the widespread availability of uniform information to ordinary people. Gutenberg’s invention was not just a technological leap; it was a catalyst for social, religious, and scientific revolutions that continue to shape our world today.
Sources
The Invention of Printing. Theodore Low De Vinne.
500 Years of Printing. S.H. Steinberg.
Printer’s Error: An Irreverent History of Books. Rebecca Romney.
Science and Civilisation in China: Volume 5, Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Paper and Printing. Joseph Needham, Tsien Tsuen-Hsuin.
Cambridge Illustrated History of China. Patricia Buckley Ebrey.
