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Movable Type Printing (Gutenberg)

Type Object Region Europe Time c. 1440

Around 1440, Mainz goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg integrated adjustable hand molds, lead-tin-antimony alloy type, oil-based ink, and a screw press into…

Timeline

  1. c. 1440–1444Strasbourg · StrasbourgDuring his time in Strasbourg, Gutenberg integrated technical elements such as hand-mold typecasting, lead alloy type, and oil-based ink, forming the prototype of a reusable movable-type printing system that laid the foundation for later commercial printing.
  2. 1448–1450Mainz · MainzGutenberg returned to Mainz in 1448, borrowing from his brother-in-law Arnold Gelthars to purchase printing equipment, establishing a workshop in the Humorbasse area, and beginning to mass-cast type and trial-print single-sheet documents and indulgences.
  3. 1450–1500Central Europe · Central EuropeBy around 1450, the Mainz printing workshop could stably produce printed matter; over the following decades, movable-type printing technology spread rapidly to Italy, France, the Netherlands, and elsewhere, becoming the material foundation of Europe's knowledge revolution.

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