Credit: Michael Reed
Caption: Gutenberg Museum

Credit: Michael Reed
Caption: Gutenberg Statue

Johannes Gutenberg was born around 1400 in Mainz but there is little known about the inventor's life. His name does not even appear on any of the works attributed to him. It is known that at a young age he trained as a goldsmith. In the 1400's Mainz was an economic, political and cultural center but nonetheless in chaos.

It was the Middle Ages and people were turning away from a limited way of thinking and instead take a swing at education. Universities were established, knowledge was gathered and the earth explored. Here Gutenberg came in – with the newfound thirst for knowledge, communication tools had to be updated. There were few methods of moving information around local regions never mind across continents. Books were costly and time consuming as scribes still had to write out each page by hand.

Long before Gutenberg's block printing came into being and individual sheets of paper could be pressed into wooden blocks with the text and illustrations carved in, the Koreans and Chinese knew about movable metal types, but due to the complex nature of the Chinese writing system, printed material was not as abundant as during the Renaissance in Europe. Although this method had proved itself over the years it was a slow process. Gutenberg wanted to develop a means of making knowledge available to as many people as possible.

After his goldsmith apprenticeship Gutenberg moved to Strasbourg for political reasons and teamed up with Andreas Dritzehn to experiment with various printing techniques. Ten years later he returned to Mainz to borrow a large sum of money. He formed another partnership, with wealthy investor Johannes Fust, and set up a press on which it's assumed he started printing the large Latin Bible. This is the bible best known as the Gutenberg Bible or 42-Line Bible.

He showed off his Bible at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1455, selling copies of the two volume book for 300 Florins each. This was the equivalent to about 3 years' wages for a typical clerk. Although three years of wages is a lot to pay for a book it was quite an improvement. Before the Gutenberg press it could take a scribe up to 20 years to copy a book equivalent to the 42-Line Bible.

Credit: Michael Reed

Caption: Gutenberg's birthplace is now an Apotheke
but it still pays homage to the little boy who grew up there

Gutenberg used hand-set blocks each bearing a single letter on its face. Now it was possible to speed up the copying process without sacrificing print quality and multiple copies of manuscripts could be printed at once. Leaflets and pamphlets were now an affordable way to inform the public and reach out to a large number of people.

It took only about thirty years for the printing press to spread across Europe. The invention of movable-type printing facilitated an easier exchange of ideas throughout Europe and helped spread the ideas of the Renaissance.

Printing became the main method of publicizing classic works and new information. Moveable type printing presses continued to be the standard until the 20th century. The printing press did not bring Gutenberg great fortune. Unfortunately the large sum that he earned at the Frankfurt Books fair was something Fust wanted a piece of. He sued Gutenberg and and the court ruled in his favour - effectively bankrupting Gutenberg. Fust was also awarded all type used in the Bible plus much of the printing equipment. Gutenberg was forced to work until his death in 1468, running a print shop in Mainz. Meanwhile Fust had become the first printer to publish a book with his name on it.

Although Gutenberg got the short end during his lifetime, his invention spread quickly and news and books began to travel across Europe faster than ever before. More people were able to afford books. The average person could now follow debates and share opinions in matters that affected them. This also made those in positions of authority feel challenged and stronger censorship laws were introduced. On the positive side, the press enabled scientific publishing, which was a major factor in originating the scientific revolution. General literacy also increased.

Credit: Michael Reed

Caption: Plaque on side of Apotheke that reads:
Here stood Gutenberg's bith place and later on the house in which the German Printers Association was founded in 1869
click to enlarge

LINKS.PUBLICATIONS.EVENTS.

Gutenberg.de: In the process of being translated. The English version currently links to areas of interest such as information on the era of Gutenberg, his invention and the city where he lived.

Mainz.de: City of Gutenberg – man of the millennium. Here Gutenberg is commemorated all over. There is a Gutenberg museum, library, statue, etc.

The Gutenberg Bible on-Line: On this site are two copies of the Gutenberg Bible. Amazing quality scans of both the paper and vellum editions. There is even a feature where you can compare the two side by side.

The Gutenberg Bible: An Online Exhibition at the U. of Texas at Austin – This site encompasses everything you would ever want to know about the Gutenberg Bible. The site contains articles on what life was like before the invention of the printing press, maps documenting the spread of printing across Europe . A behind the scenes look at the Digital Gutenberg Project – where the bible was recorded in 1300 digital images with an overhead scanner.

Gutenberg Digital: A selection of Gutenberg's printed book that have been scanned and can be viewed on the internet. Also there are articles with great diagrams on how letter press printing works, on the impact of printing, and how the 42 Line Bible project was carried out.

Gutenberg Museum:

The Museum is located near the east end of the Cathedral in a modern building. The museum houses a huge collection of old books ranging from hand-written copies to early prints. The display is arranged around themes so you can see how printing developed in different subject fields such as religion, science, music and art including the famous Gutenberg bibles. The museum contains several presses and other equipment used in printing including explanations of various papers and processes. Live demonstrations are frequently held in the basement. All descriptions in the museum are in German only - English audio guides are available.

Admission is € 3 for adults and € 1,30 for children.

Liebfrauenplatz 5
Monday - Thursday 8am – 4pm
Friday 8am – 1pm

Museum Library
Tuesday – Friday 9am – 1pm and 2pm – 5:30pm (last entrance 4:20pm )

The museum store is open Tuesday – Saturday 9am – 5pm , Sunday 11am – 3pm . They also have a second location at Am Markt 17.