Johannes Gutenberg

1398-1468

IntroductionJohannes Gutenberg was a German goldsmith and inventor best known for the Gutenberg press, an innovative printing machine that used movable type. Gutenberg was born between 1394 and 1400 and died in 1468.

FamilyoHe was the youngest

of his family oBorn in Mainz,

Germany oHis father was an

upper-class merchantoHis parents were

Friele Gensfleisch zur Laden and Elese Wyrich

Before the Printing press

oBooks were written by hand.

oIn fact you could hardly call them books.

oThey were called Manuscripts for they were copied by hand

Before the Printing press

oIf a mistake was made the whole page was ruined.

oA book cost as much a family farm

oAnd Johannes LOVED to read

Wood block pressoEach page had to

be individually carved by hand

oThis made printing long manuscripts easier to mass produce

oYet slow for few printings

His CareeroAs a young man He loved to read.

Unfortunately a single book could cost the same as a family farm

oHe decided to find a better way to print books

oIt took over 30 years but he finally came up with the Movable Type Printing press in 1436 

The Gutenberg PressoGutenberg used

individual “pieces” for each letter

oHe used metal instead of wood

oThis made it possible to print anything

oHe only needed a hand full of each letter