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a printing press is a device that allows for the mass production of uniform printed matter, mainly text in the form of books, pamphlets and newspapers. first created in China around the 9th century, the printing press was a revolution in the arts and sciences. it was during this period of early printing that rolled-up scrolls began to be replaced by book-formatted texts. woodblock printing was also used in japan and korea at the time, and metal block printing was also developed at some point during that period, typically for buddhist and taoist texts. the invention of the gutenberg press in the 15th century enabled mass publication in europe for the first time.
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the printing press
johannes gutenberg invented the first commercial printing press in europe in 1450. in order to make the type available in large quantities and to different stages of printing, gutenberg applied the concept of replica casting, which saw letters created in reverse in brass and then replicas made from these molds by pouring molten lead.
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aesop’s fables
printed by william caxton
London, 1484
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Diamond Sutra
China, 868CE
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no one knows when the first printing press was invented or who invented it, but the oldest known printed book is thought to be the the diamond sutra, a buddhist text from dunhuang, china from around 868CE. during the tang dynasty. the diamond sutra was created with a method known as block printing, which utilized panels of hand-carved wood blocks in reverse.
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aesop's fables were among the first illustrated books to be printed in europe, but the text dates back to ancient greece. the earliest known example was published in bamberg, germany, in 1461.they were first published in English by William Caxton in 1484. caxton had introduced the printing press to britain just eight years earlier. he translated the fables into english from an earlier french translation.