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Early European Movable-Type Printing

Type Object Region Europe Time c. 1400–1500

Early 15th-century European printing centered on woodcuts and block printing, with movable type still gestating;…

Timeline

  1. c. 1400–1420Germany · GermanyWorkshops across Europe printed religious images, playing cards and short texts with wood and metal blocks; block printing became an important supplement to book reproduction, developing alongside the manuscript industry.
  2. 1421–1430Rhine region · RhinelandPrinting in the Rhine region and the Low Countries kept expanding; ink formulas, paper supply and pressing machinery steadily improved, and output of block-printed books and single-sheet prints rose markedly, accumulating practical experience for later movable-type composition.
  3. c. 1450–1500Mainz · MainzJohannes Gutenberg combined adjustable metal type, oil-based ink and the screw press in Mainz, achieving the breakthrough invention of Western movable-type printing; book production costs plummeted and the spread of knowledge entered a new era.

Sources