The Movable Type Printing Press

Objective: Understand why it is so

important?

Before the printing press

• There were two different ways to make books…..

– 1. hand copy by monks

– 2. stamp with wood

#1 Illuminated Manuscripts: beautiful but oh so time consuming…

A leaf from Catholic Church. Book of Hours. Rouen, France, ca. 1490. http://www.sanford-artedventures.com/study/

g_romanesque.html

#2 Chinese Print Technology

• Woodblock Print and the tools used to make it

• What are challenges with this printing?

Johann Gutenberg

• Gutenberg invented the printing press

• was from Mainz, Germany• His first books were

printed in 1454-1455

Gutenberg’s Improvements

Although printing press technology already existed, he made changes to the following:

1. printer's ink

2. making of type

3. use a press

4. production process – factory work

The Ink

• It was not really ink at all, more like an oil paint, unlike writing-ink, which was water-based

• Water-based ink would have run off the metal types. Instead the thick, oil-based varnish stuck to them.

The Types• Types = Letters, Punctuation marks, and other signs

• Made of Metal

• “Types” could be put together to form words, sentences, and pages

• After printing the page, the types could then be reused

The Press• One of Gutenberg's most radical ideas was to use a press.

• Presses had been around for a long time, but were used for other purposes, such as wine making.

• Therefore the press already existed, he just found a new use for it.

The Production Process

The made the printing press a workshop, similar to a factory.

Each person, (see the picture) had a specific job. Sorting types, putting ink on the types, twisting the press, drying the paper, assembling the books.

The first book printed?........... The bible. Why? Think about the time period

Gutenberg’s Impact

• Books, newspapers and pamphlets will become mass-produced.

• Ideas spread rapidly.• People were able to debate and discuss

matters that concerned them. • There were more attempts at censorship, as those in

authority felt threatened by the new abundance of information

Gutenberg's invention did not make him richIt MADE BOOKS easier to produce, cheaper, and widely disseminated.

1. Who invented the printing press and what country?

2. In what ways was the printing press a new invention and what ways was it not?

3. How did the printing press change history?

Do you understand the big idea?