Gutenberg Printing Press

 -The final invention that is discussed is the revolutionary Gutenberg Printing Press, the machine that brought movable type printing to Europe, over traditional block printing used in many places at that time.

5. Gutenberg Printing Press – Mainz, Germany, invented from 1440-1450CE: While the idea of a printing press wasn’t necessarily originally from Gutenberg, but rather from other names in China, he is credited with creating the most advanced system of mass production (for its time) of print to Europe. In order to create it, he had to cast letters in reverse and create a hybrid-material frame, and this is one of the many notable “signatures” of his machine; its incorporation of metal, compared to previous printing machinery being fully wooden. Another important idea is his addition of a mechanism to flatten the paper in his design of the entire press. Soon after creating the machine, he went on to prove its superiority over writing books by hand by printing over a hundred copies of an 1800 page version of the Bible. (History.com Editors)

Legacy: Similar to the last example, paper making/use in the Middle East, but on a smaller scale, Gutenberg was able to use his printing press to spread the word of the dominant religion in his region, which was Christianity. He achieved this by efficiently creating dozens of copies of the Bible through printing, rather than writing. He introduced to Europe, as well, the idea to print books with movable type, rather than traditional block printing. This made the communication of ideas more efficient and accurate.

Contact danielekmekciu@gmail.com to get the viewable SKP file of this 3d virtual model of the Gutenberg Printing Press!

Inspiration from (Gutenberg Press Model) (Andrews)




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