HISTORY 1037 - THE PRINTING PRESS

THE DEVELOPMENT OF T HE PRINTING PRESS

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This presentation explains the development of the printing press by

examining:

• Printing before the Press

• The four stages in printing development
• The creation of paper
• The development of wood-block printing
• The use of bronze type
• The creation of movable type
• The Popularization of the Printing Press
• Part 2: The Impact of the Printing Press :
• The Revolution in Reading and the Renaissance
• The Scientific Revolution
• The questioning of the Church during the Reformation
PRINTING BEFORE THE PRESS
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Our story begins in the medieval era, after the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5 century AD.
When Rome fell to the invading Barbarian tribes, Europe entered a period known as the Dark
Ages. The Dark Ages stretched from about 500 AD to 1400 AD and represented a period of
technological, cultural, and intellectual stagnation. Fearful that the knowledge of the Ancients
would be lost in the destruction of the Roman cities, the Church set about preserving Ancient
texts.

Image: Thomas Cole, The Course of Empire Destruction

To preserve the knowledge passed down from the Ancient Greeks and Romans, medieval monks
and scholars called scribes started copying scrolls of information by hand. These scribes worked
long hours in a scriptorium (like the one pictured below). A small book could take months to
complete. A book the size of the Bible (the most popular book in the period) could take several
years to create.
 The Problems with Copying:
• Though many monks and scholars worked hard to preserve the ancient texts, the process
of copying was very slow and laborious. The quality of the print also varied according to
the abilities of the scribe.
• The work itself was also quite limited. The scriptoriums were governed by a strict set of
rules: monks were not allowed to speak and were not supposed to alter or correct the
texts. They were merely supposed to reproduce the works exactly as they were.
• But, since many of the men copying the texts were chosen based solely on their technical
skills (as scribes), rather than on their reading abilities, errors were also not uncommon in
the newly copied texts.
• Scribes who could read sometimes took a more creative approach to their assignments,
adding details that could not be found in the originals.
• These problems led some early Renaissance scholars in the 14 th and 15th centuries to
question both the authenticity and accuracy of many texts.
• The Bible, in particular, came under intense scrutiny in the 15 th and 16th centuries.
• It was in this growing period of critical thinking that the printing press was created in
Europe.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PRINTING PRESS

The printing press developed in a number of stages as a result of innovations all over the
world (each will be discussed in turn):
1. Paper
2. Block printing
3. Bronze printing
4. Moveable type

1. THE CREATION OF PAPER

• Paper was first made in China during the first century BC out of hemp, mulberry fibres,
and rags.
• Knowledge of papermaking spread slowly throughout Asia and reached the Middle East
by the middle of the eighth century AD.
• Papermaking finally arrived in Europe in 1150, when the first paper mill was established
in Spain.
• Before the creation of paper, European books were written on clay, papyrus, wax, and
parchment. Part of the reason that copying was so important was because these materials
broke down over time.
• Parchment is a material made from the skins of animals (ex. sheep or goats).

• The animal hides were soaked, scraped, stretched, and treated with lime or chalk until
they were smooth (the process can be seen in the picture here).
• Though parchment was initially stronger than paper, it was more difficult and time-
consuming to manufacture.

2. THE DEVELOPMENT OF WOOD-BLOCK PRINTING

• Wood-block printing was also first developed in China and Korea.

• Using this technique, images and some text were carved into wooden blocks. The
wooden blocks were then soaked in ink and pressed onto paper. This dramatically
sped up the process of printing and allowed works to be mass produced for the
first time.
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• This technique spread to Western Europe by the late 14 century.
• Though more efficient than copying, the wooden blocks often broke down over
time. Also, each page needed to be individually carved into the wood (this required
a great deal of artistic skill and effort).
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Image: picture and text from a 15 century German block book

3. THE DEVELOPMENT OF BRONZE TYPE

• By the 13th and 14th centuries, Asian printers began replacing wooden type with bronze
type. Below you can see some early examples of bronze, wood, iron, and copper cuts for
printing in Korea in the 13th century.
• This system was much more durable and offered a more consistent print.
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• In the 13 century, Yi Kyu-bo (1168-1241) from Korea used metal movable type on
handmade mulberry paper to publish his life works (including essays and an
autobiography).
• This was probably the first time that a complete work was published using movable
type.
• This process spread to the West as well.

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4. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PRINTING PRESS

• By the time Johannes Gutenberg began experimenting with his own printing press
in the mid 1400s, he had a great deal of knowledge and wisdom to draw from.
• In spite of the many advancements made in Asia, many scholars recognize
Gutenberg as the father of the printing press. This has a lot to do with cultural as
well as with practical issues (ex. the Chinese alphabet with its many characters did
not lend itself well to movable type and the Chinese relied more heavily on wood-
blocking printing for many years).
Image available at:
[Link]

THE INVENTOR: JOHANNES GUTENBERG

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• Little is known about the life of Johannes Gutenberg.

• Historians estimate that he was born sometime around 1400 AD in Mainz,
Germany.
• He moved to Strasbourg in the 1430s and worked as a silversmith producing metal
hand mirrors used by pilgrims visiting holy sites.
• Gutenberg later returned to Mainz in the 1440s and began development on a
movable type printing press.
GUTENBERG’S PRINTING PRESS:

• Movable type means that each letter of the alphabet was cast in an individual
piece of metal that can be used and reused.
• This meant that the printing of books could be completed at a much faster pace.
• For a demonstration on how Gutenberg’s press worked, please watch the following
video: [Link]

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GUTENBERG’S BIBLE

• The first substantial work printed by Gutenberg was the Bible.

• It was printed in 1455.
• There are only 21 complete copies remaining in the world (five of these can be
found at libraries and museums in the USA).
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WHAT MADE GUTENBERG’S PRESS UNIQUE?

• Gutenberg’s printing press remained the standard printing press in the Western
world for hundreds of years.
• Print shops such as the one pictured here proliferated in Europe.

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THE POPULARIZATION OF THE PRINTING PRESS:

• By the 1480s, many Italian cities had established their own presses.
• By the 1500s, there were more than a thousand presses all over the continent.
• The following three slides trace the rapid spread of this new technology.
• Diagram Source: Dittmar, Jeremiah. “Information Technology and Economic
Change: The Impact of the Printing Press.” (February 11, 2001). Available at
[Link]
impact-printing-press
PART 2: THE IMPACT OF THE PRINTING PRESS:
• There was initially some resistance to the printing press from the upper classes.
• Since books were so expensive to create, they were often only owned by the elite.
• Some worried that the prestige of book ownership would be diminished by a
machine creating cheap imitations of professional and painstakingly hand-crafted
works.
• Despite these initial concerns, the printing press went on to revolutionize many
aspects of life in early modern Europe. The following information examines the
far-reaching implications of Gutenberg’s invention.

IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY, EUROPE ENTERED A PERIOD OF GREAT CHANGE

• The artists, humanists, and writers of the Renaissance celebrated creativity and
individualism in their art and literature.
• The scientists of the Scientific Revolution questioned the placement of the heavens
and the planets.
• Religious thinkers challenged traditional hierarchies and accepted wisdom in the
Protestant Reformation.
• All used the written word and the printing press to disseminate their ideas.
• Gutenberg’s press revolutionized the accessibility of knowledge in the Western
world and quickened the pace of social, economic, and political changes in Europe.
• The rapid circulation of ideas had some very far-reaching and unintended
consequences that will be explored in this presentation.

Topics examined include:

• The Revolution in Reading and the Renaissance
• The Scientific Revolution
• The questioning of the Church during the Reformation

AVAILABILITY OF BOOKS:
• The most obvious impact of Gutenberg's press was the increasing availability of
books.
• Though books had been relatively rare, by 1500, there were over 9 million books in
circulation in Europe.
• As a result of the printing press, the best-seller was officially born.

A REVOLUTION IN READING:

• The people of the Renaissance also wanted a greater variety of books: Almanacs,
romance novels, poetry, and music were all published at this time.
• Other early books focused on geography, literature, dictionaries, and government
policies.
 • In Germany, daily newspapers arrived on the scene by the early 1600s and a more
informed public began to emerge throughout Europe.

• The increasing availability of books led to an increase in the literacy rate.

• Though literacy is very difficult to measure, especially in a historical sense, most
scholars argue that the increase in the number of books signified an interest in
learning to read.
• It also helped to standardize grammar and spelling in languages besides Latin.
• This improved communication and facilitated the exchange of ideas.
• In the medieval period, most books were written in Latin, which was considered the
language of scholarship (not easily accessible to the average person).
• During the Renaissance, the newly educated classes, who could now afford books,
demanded works in their own languages.
• This led to the democratization of knowledge and an increase in education.

THE IMPACT OF THE PRINTING PRESS:

• The significance of the printing press was not just in how it contributed to the
spread of information, but also in what sorts of information it was publishing.

HUMANISM:
• The proliferation of books also helped to raise awareness of a new philosophy
called humanism.
• Humanists were Renaissance scholars who returned to the works of ancient
writers (from Greece and Rome).
• Humanists developed a more critical approach to knowledge and a genuine
enthusiasm for life and learning. Rather than accepting wisdom that had been
 passed down through the ages, humanists began to question authorities and
challenge accepted authorities.
• Above all, humanists believed that men could control their own destinies and that
by using their minds they could figure out the world around them.

THE SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION:

• This energy was applied especially to understanding the physical world, heavens,
and universe.

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• Scientists working on similar theories (such as the heliocentric theory) in different

regions benefited from the printing press because they could share the results of
their work with a large number of other scientists.
• In this way, knowledge about the telescope, calculus, and the theories of planetary
motion became more readily available. Scientists could then build on the efforts of
others, rather than re-discover similar findings.
• We will explore the Scientific Revolution in greater detail when we discuss the
invention of the telescope next week.

THE REFORMATION:

• Since Gutenberg’s printing press took book copying out of the hands of the Church,
it became much harder for the Church to control what was being written.
• This opened the door for challenges to the Church’s power, authority, and
practices.
 • One of the greatest challenges came from a monk named Martin Luther.
• In 1517, Martin Luther nailed 95 theses to a church door in Wittenberg, Germany.
• This action as well as the publication and distribution of Luther’s theses by his
students started the Protestant Reformation, the moment when the unified
Church was forever severed into Roman Catholic and Protestant denominations.
• Luther’s theses detailed what he believed to be the abuses of the Church,
including:
• The selling of indulgences (kind of like get out of jail free cards for sinners)
• The practice of simony (the sale of church offices)
•

Luther believed in the following:

• He wanted to bring the Church back to its roots and simplify the mass. He believed
that over time the Church had deviated from its principles and core values.
• He placed a great deal of emphasis on the Bible itself – on people being able to
read the Bible for themselves in their own languages. This was only possible after
the invention of the printing press.
• He argued that there was no need for intermediaries between God and the people
and that it was the clergy’s sole role to preach the Christian message and minister
to people’s spiritual needs.

• Luther’s ideas found a captive audience in Western Europe, especially in Germany.

• He and his followers also used the printing press to mass produce propaganda for the
Reformation.
• This was especially useful in reaching the many illiterate masses that populated Europe.
• In the first images on the following slide the act of Jesus washing the feet of the
disciples is juxtaposed against the Pope having his feet washed by the people. In the
next two images, Jesus’ crown of thorns is juxtaposed against the Pope’s crown of gold.
These images were supposed to demonstrate just how far the Church had strayed from
its roots.
For more information on Reformation propaganda, see:
[Link]
Reformation_and_the_propaganda_war.htm
THE PRINTING PRESS ALLOWED LUTHER'S IDEAS AS WELL AS THE IDEAS OF OTHER
PROTESTANTS LIKE JOHN CALVIN TO SPREAD RAPIDLY.

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THE IMPACT OF THE PRINTING PRESS:

• It is difficult to underestimate the impact of the printing press as it has been linked
with so many other revolutionary movements.
• The success of the American Revolution, for instance, has been linked to the
publication and distribution of Thomas Paine’s pamphlet, Common Sense in 1776.
REMEMBERING GUTENBERG:
• To celebrate Gutenberg’s printing press, this monument was unveiled in Berlin,
Germany in 2006.
• A statue of Gutenberg can also be found in Vienna, Austria.
• The Gutenberg Museum is located in Mainz, Germany.
For more information, see: [Link]

THE LEGACY OF THE PRINTING PRESS:

• In 1999, to celebrate the turn of the millennium, A&E created a program called
Biography of the Millennium. In this program, scholars counted down the one
hundred most influential people in the last one thousand years. Their number one
choice was Johannes Gutenberg.
Check out the program here:
• [Link]
Consider the reasons why Gutenberg was selected. Do you agree or disagree?
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER THIS WEEK:
• How were books printed before the printing press?
• Who was Johannes Gutenberg?
• What led to the development of the printing press?
• What was the impact of the printing press on education? Religion?
• What major revolutionary movements have been assisted by the development of the
printing press?