How Did Johannes Gutenberg Influence The Printing Press
Johannes Gutenberg has been regarded as one of the most influential and innovative figures in all of human history. Much of what has happened since his life has been thanks in some part to him; the fall of serfdom, the landed gentry, education of the masses and many social movements. The Protestant Reformation would have likely fizzled out if it had not been for the affordable and easily produced literature that spread Martin Luther’s word. It is rather surprising to learn that, despite this major contribution to history, that Guttenberg was never financially comfortable. In fact, he found himself in court many times over financial deals that went bad. Perhaps the most devastating trial was that involving his partner in business, and moneylender, Johanne Fust. Gutenberg’s printing press contributed to the ability to disseminate information and literature at a rate infinitely faster than in the past, enduring that for the first time in history, man could be relatively certain that the innovations and progress of his generation wouldn’t be lost to time. Gutenberg “poured more than twenty years of his life into his printing press.” (Rees) While there were improvements made to his design over the years, his invention played a significant role in education
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and the written word.
Gutenberg’s exact date of birth is unknown, but he was born in Mainz, Germany in 1398. It is interesting to note that Gutenberg was not his actual surname. At the time of his birth it was common to take the name of the land or house that the family lived in. Genfleish was his name at birth, but was later changed to Gutenberg after the name of the home he and his parents lived in at the time.
Gutenberg grew up in a wealthy family of landowners and statesmen. His father and uncle worked at the ecclesiastic mint in Mainz. As was the custom in those days, Johannes more or less inherited a position at the mint as well. During his tenure there, he honed his skills and became a rather talented metal worker. He gained valuable knowledge about metals, temperature, casting, and presses. It is unknown how long he worked at the mint. In 1411 there was a time of political unrest in Mainz resulting in the Gutenberg family being forced to move along with hundreds of other families. Johannes moved to
Strausbourg.
There is little known factual information about many details of Gutenberg’s life regarding time spent in places he lived, marriages, or children. Strausbourg is where it is thought that he spent the next twenty years engaging in various occupations to include that of blacksmith, goldsmith, and manufacturing “holy” mirrors. Documents were found showing that he paid taxes on several hundreds of gallons of wine in 1439. There has been some doubt about the accuracy of this as he simply wasn’t wealthy enough to have this much wine in his possession.(Pollard) It was speculated that the wine and mirror business was mainly used to disguise and possibly fund his secret work on his printing press invention. It was during this timeframe that there is evidence that he began to work on his invention and experiment with metal casting. Some historians think that Gutenberg began to make the special, “holy” mirrors as a marketing tool. Their selling point was that they were, “designed to capture ‘holy light’ shining from the religious relics.” (Sullivan) The mirrors were to be sold for an upcoming religious event to Aachen, but a terrible flood came and the event was canceled, leaving Gutenberg with a useless commodity and no supplemental funding for his secret project. (Wikipedia) It was an invention that would drastically change the literary distribution worldwide.
Up until the unveiling of Gutenberg’s printing press invention, there were very few books in circulation. According to an online article produced by the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin, “for approximately 4,500 years before Gutenberg invented the printing press, books were produced by hand.” (University of Texas at Austin) Printed books were mostly limited to schools for use by the teacher, and in the homes of the very wealthy. These books pertained primarily to educational and religious purposes. The chief reason for the lack of the printed word was that books were strictly handwritten by monks in monasteries in Rome. They would spend hours in silence, hand writing books with a quill pen. Ink came from various sources including gallnuts mixed with ferrous sulfate, or in rare cases, black carbon residue from oil lamps. (University of Texas at Austin) This process was time consuming and rather labor intensive. It could take upwards of a year to even produce a simple book. There were often translation errors found as the scribes were uneducated and illiterate themselves, or would interject their own ideas into the text occasionally. (Pollard) Just as printing progressed, so did the medium used for printing. Animal skin vellum was used in the earliest stages giving way to a linen based paper that was introduced in China. The linen paper improvement made it easier for printing larger scaled projects, and was found to be not only easier to come by but cheaper as well. The linen paper proved to be just as durable as the previously used vellum. (Pollard) The Renaissance Period sparked a growth explosion that begged the need for more wide spread knowledge and literature to support its educational and religious expansion. With this surge, “Gutenberg foresaw enormous profit-making potential for a printing press that used moveable metal type.” (Rubenstein)
“It is a little-known but undisputed historical fact that Johannes Gutenberg did not invent the printing press.” (Newitz) Six centuries prior to Gutenberg’s introduction to his invention, China fashioned a form of printing using wooden blocks. The lack of communication between China and the rest of the world at that time, combined with the complexity and volume of their alphabet made their attempt somewhat unsuccessful. (Pollard) The wooden blocks also proved to be problematic to their design. “While wood carving was skilled in 1400, it required exact precision and wood could be easily damaged and worn so new, more precise and durable technology was needed.”(Pollard) Historians have delved into whether or not Gutenberg was even the first to use moveable type. There is evidence that a Dutchman by the name of Laurens Coster may have introduced this concept in 1423. Despite this, most agree that Gutenberg has earned the distinction of being credited for this invention. Regardless of whether he actually invented the moveable type printing press, he definitely “made it a commercially available device.”(Newitz) Gutenberg utilized his experiences and knowledge gained in his previous occupations in the mint and whatever his involvement in the wine industry might have served as his primary basis for the press itself. The actual press was not a new design or concept as it had been used in mints and wineries for years. The most appreciable innovation was the clever art of casting and molding the moveable metal type. The defunct “holy mirror” escapade may have been a fiasco, but it provided him with the idea for the construction of the framework of the caste that eventually was used to hold the metal characters. (Gale) The mold that was used to hold the individual letters and characters was referred to as a type. (Rees) Gutenberg was with finding a metal soft enough to cast. Some historians report that brass was used while others maintain the metal chosen was copper. Each letter and character was carved into a punch used to transfer it to the metal. The size and shape of the various letters and characters were determining factors in the width of the lead base. (Rubenstein) Gutenberg put much thought into the type of ink and paper would be the best to use for printing. He arrived at an oil based ink because the “traditional water-based ink used on wood blocks wasn’t sticking to the metal type.” (Rubenstein) His design of the type, framework, and press became known as his invention, the moveable metal type printing press. Gutenberg’s most notable mass printing job was his 42 line Bible printed in 1455 that later became known as the Gutenberg Bible. This was actually not his first item he printed. It has been said that a German poem was among the first items printed along with some smaller jobs that are equivalent to the leaflets and pamphlets of modern day. The ability to be able to prove much about his printing is hampered by his not putting his name on his work.
Shortly before the Bible was printed, Gutenberg once again found himself facing financial difficulty. He borrowed money from Johann Fust, possibly to complete the work needed on his press that made mass printing of the Bible a reality. By 1455 Gutenberg had defaulted on his promise to repay the loan, which landed him in court once again, but this time there was much more at stake. Fust won the case and basically took over where Gutenberg left off in the printing business. (Biography.com) Unlike Gutenberg, Fust put his name on his printing works to identify them as his. Following the loss of his business to Fust, Gutenberg continued to print, but on a much smaller scale. (Rees) Gutenberg died in February of 1468. By this time he had been able to see how the fruits of his labor changed the world.
Gutenberg’s printing press remained unchanged in its design for nearly 400 years. His invention revolutionized the world centuries ago by making mass printing possible and affordable thereby expanding mankind’s knowledge base across the globe and making permanent the words and works of scholars long after they and their acolytes vanished from this earth. Author Mark Twain wrote: “The world concedes without hesitation or dispute that Gutenberg’s invention is incomparably the mightiest event that has ever happened…whatever the world is today, good and bad together, that is what Gutenberg’s invention has made it…for from that source it has all come…the evil wrought through his mighty invention is immeasurably outbalanced by the good it has brought…” (Tomlinson)
Works Cited
“Gutenberg Invents Moveable Type Printing Press, C 1450.” Historic World Events. Detroit: Gale, 2012. Student Resources in Context Web 18 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.ic.galegroup.com/ic/suic/RefrenceDetailsPage/DocumentToolsPortletWindow?
Harry Ransom Center: The University of Texas at Austin. Educator Programs. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/educatormodules/gutenberg/books.htm
Newitz, Annalee. “ Printed Books Existed Nearly 600 Years Before Gutenberg’s Bible”. Web . 17 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.i09.gizmodo.com
Pollard, Michael. Johannes Gutenberg: Master of Modern Printing. Blackbirch Press, Inc. 2001
Rees, Fran. Johannes Gutenberg: Inventor of the Printing Press. Compass Point Books. Minneapolis, Mn. 2006
Rubenstein, Geoffrey. “Printing: History and Development. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.karmak.org/archive/2002/08/history_of_print.html
Sullivan, Nate. “Johannes Gutenberg: Inventions, Facts and Accomplishments. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.study.com/academy/lesson/johannes-gutenberg-inventions.htm
Tomlinson, Jane. “Johannes Gutenberg and the Printing Revolution”. Word Press. Web. 17 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.onthisdeity.com/3rf-february-1486 Woodbridge, Connecticut.
and the written word.
Gutenberg’s exact date of birth is unknown, but he was born in Mainz, Germany in 1398. It is interesting to note that Gutenberg was not his actual surname. At the time of his birth it was common to take the name of the land or house that the family lived in. Genfleish was his name at birth, but was later changed to Gutenberg after the name of the home he and his parents lived in at the time.
Gutenberg grew up in a wealthy family of landowners and statesmen. His father and uncle worked at the ecclesiastic mint in Mainz. As was the custom in those days, Johannes more or less inherited a position at the mint as well. During his tenure there, he honed his skills and became a rather talented metal worker. He gained valuable knowledge about metals, temperature, casting, and presses. It is unknown how long he worked at the mint. In 1411 there was a time of political unrest in Mainz resulting in the Gutenberg family being forced to move along with hundreds of other families. Johannes moved to
Strausbourg.
There is little known factual information about many details of Gutenberg’s life regarding time spent in places he lived, marriages, or children. Strausbourg is where it is thought that he spent the next twenty years engaging in various occupations to include that of blacksmith, goldsmith, and manufacturing “holy” mirrors. Documents were found showing that he paid taxes on several hundreds of gallons of wine in 1439. There has been some doubt about the accuracy of this as he simply wasn’t wealthy enough to have this much wine in his possession.(Pollard) It was speculated that the wine and mirror business was mainly used to disguise and possibly fund his secret work on his printing press invention. It was during this timeframe that there is evidence that he began to work on his invention and experiment with metal casting. Some historians think that Gutenberg began to make the special, “holy” mirrors as a marketing tool. Their selling point was that they were, “designed to capture ‘holy light’ shining from the religious relics.” (Sullivan) The mirrors were to be sold for an upcoming religious event to Aachen, but a terrible flood came and the event was canceled, leaving Gutenberg with a useless commodity and no supplemental funding for his secret project. (Wikipedia) It was an invention that would drastically change the literary distribution worldwide.
Up until the unveiling of Gutenberg’s printing press invention, there were very few books in circulation. According to an online article produced by the Harry Ransom Center at the University of Texas at Austin, “for approximately 4,500 years before Gutenberg invented the printing press, books were produced by hand.” (University of Texas at Austin) Printed books were mostly limited to schools for use by the teacher, and in the homes of the very wealthy. These books pertained primarily to educational and religious purposes. The chief reason for the lack of the printed word was that books were strictly handwritten by monks in monasteries in Rome. They would spend hours in silence, hand writing books with a quill pen. Ink came from various sources including gallnuts mixed with ferrous sulfate, or in rare cases, black carbon residue from oil lamps. (University of Texas at Austin) This process was time consuming and rather labor intensive. It could take upwards of a year to even produce a simple book. There were often translation errors found as the scribes were uneducated and illiterate themselves, or would interject their own ideas into the text occasionally. (Pollard) Just as printing progressed, so did the medium used for printing. Animal skin vellum was used in the earliest stages giving way to a linen based paper that was introduced in China. The linen paper improvement made it easier for printing larger scaled projects, and was found to be not only easier to come by but cheaper as well. The linen paper proved to be just as durable as the previously used vellum. (Pollard) The Renaissance Period sparked a growth explosion that begged the need for more wide spread knowledge and literature to support its educational and religious expansion. With this surge, “Gutenberg foresaw enormous profit-making potential for a printing press that used moveable metal type.” (Rubenstein)
“It is a little-known but undisputed historical fact that Johannes Gutenberg did not invent the printing press.” (Newitz) Six centuries prior to Gutenberg’s introduction to his invention, China fashioned a form of printing using wooden blocks. The lack of communication between China and the rest of the world at that time, combined with the complexity and volume of their alphabet made their attempt somewhat unsuccessful. (Pollard) The wooden blocks also proved to be problematic to their design. “While wood carving was skilled in 1400, it required exact precision and wood could be easily damaged and worn so new, more precise and durable technology was needed.”(Pollard) Historians have delved into whether or not Gutenberg was even the first to use moveable type. There is evidence that a Dutchman by the name of Laurens Coster may have introduced this concept in 1423. Despite this, most agree that Gutenberg has earned the distinction of being credited for this invention. Regardless of whether he actually invented the moveable type printing press, he definitely “made it a commercially available device.”(Newitz) Gutenberg utilized his experiences and knowledge gained in his previous occupations in the mint and whatever his involvement in the wine industry might have served as his primary basis for the press itself. The actual press was not a new design or concept as it had been used in mints and wineries for years. The most appreciable innovation was the clever art of casting and molding the moveable metal type. The defunct “holy mirror” escapade may have been a fiasco, but it provided him with the idea for the construction of the framework of the caste that eventually was used to hold the metal characters. (Gale) The mold that was used to hold the individual letters and characters was referred to as a type. (Rees) Gutenberg was with finding a metal soft enough to cast. Some historians report that brass was used while others maintain the metal chosen was copper. Each letter and character was carved into a punch used to transfer it to the metal. The size and shape of the various letters and characters were determining factors in the width of the lead base. (Rubenstein) Gutenberg put much thought into the type of ink and paper would be the best to use for printing. He arrived at an oil based ink because the “traditional water-based ink used on wood blocks wasn’t sticking to the metal type.” (Rubenstein) His design of the type, framework, and press became known as his invention, the moveable metal type printing press. Gutenberg’s most notable mass printing job was his 42 line Bible printed in 1455 that later became known as the Gutenberg Bible. This was actually not his first item he printed. It has been said that a German poem was among the first items printed along with some smaller jobs that are equivalent to the leaflets and pamphlets of modern day. The ability to be able to prove much about his printing is hampered by his not putting his name on his work.
Shortly before the Bible was printed, Gutenberg once again found himself facing financial difficulty. He borrowed money from Johann Fust, possibly to complete the work needed on his press that made mass printing of the Bible a reality. By 1455 Gutenberg had defaulted on his promise to repay the loan, which landed him in court once again, but this time there was much more at stake. Fust won the case and basically took over where Gutenberg left off in the printing business. (Biography.com) Unlike Gutenberg, Fust put his name on his printing works to identify them as his. Following the loss of his business to Fust, Gutenberg continued to print, but on a much smaller scale. (Rees) Gutenberg died in February of 1468. By this time he had been able to see how the fruits of his labor changed the world.
Gutenberg’s printing press remained unchanged in its design for nearly 400 years. His invention revolutionized the world centuries ago by making mass printing possible and affordable thereby expanding mankind’s knowledge base across the globe and making permanent the words and works of scholars long after they and their acolytes vanished from this earth. Author Mark Twain wrote: “The world concedes without hesitation or dispute that Gutenberg’s invention is incomparably the mightiest event that has ever happened…whatever the world is today, good and bad together, that is what Gutenberg’s invention has made it…for from that source it has all come…the evil wrought through his mighty invention is immeasurably outbalanced by the good it has brought…” (Tomlinson)
Works Cited
“Gutenberg Invents Moveable Type Printing Press, C 1450.” Historic World Events. Detroit: Gale, 2012. Student Resources in Context Web 18 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.ic.galegroup.com/ic/suic/RefrenceDetailsPage/DocumentToolsPortletWindow?
Harry Ransom Center: The University of Texas at Austin. Educator Programs. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.hrc.utexas.edu/educatormodules/gutenberg/books.htm
Newitz, Annalee. “ Printed Books Existed Nearly 600 Years Before Gutenberg’s Bible”. Web . 17 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.i09.gizmodo.com
Pollard, Michael. Johannes Gutenberg: Master of Modern Printing. Blackbirch Press, Inc. 2001
Rees, Fran. Johannes Gutenberg: Inventor of the Printing Press. Compass Point Books. Minneapolis, Mn. 2006
Rubenstein, Geoffrey. “Printing: History and Development. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.karmak.org/archive/2002/08/history_of_print.html
Sullivan, Nate. “Johannes Gutenberg: Inventions, Facts and Accomplishments. Web 15 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.study.com/academy/lesson/johannes-gutenberg-inventions.htm
Tomlinson, Jane. “Johannes Gutenberg and the Printing Revolution”. Word Press. Web. 17 July 2016. Webpage: http://www.onthisdeity.com/3rf-february-1486 Woodbridge, Connecticut.