Over the ages, man experimented with several mediums to record ideas and thoughts. The discovery of papyrus and ability to write on it then led to man wanting a more practical way to reproduce the writings. Thus, printing was born.

The invention of printing took place sometime between the 4th and 7th century A.D during the Tang dynasty (618 – 906). The first form of printing began with blocks of wood which is known as wood-block printing. This paved the way to the western printing revolution which was sparked by Johannes Gutenberg, a goldsmith and businessman from the mining town of Mainz in southern Germany. Gutenberg invented the printing press with replaceable/moveable wooden or metal letters between the years 1436 and 1440.

The first book Gutenberg printed in volume using this technology was the Bible, also known as the Gutenberg Bible and the 42-line Bible (the number of lines on each page).

Here’s a brief and laid back look on how western printing came to be.

A look at printing technology through the years.

Image Credits: Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin