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1455 Gutenberg Bible: The first book ever printed
Facsimile reproduction
One would think that the first book would have been very primitive and of poor quality, but this is not the case. Gutenberg's Bible was a stunningly beautiful work done in beautiful type style, and then hand-illuminated in a rainbow of colours, as well as liquid gold. Even the paper used was of the highest quality and bore unusual and artful watermarks."
Experts have established that Gutenberg probably printed 180 Bibles, 30 on parchment and 150 on paper. Today only 20 complete originals exist in the world. Six are in the United States, including one in the Library of Congress.
The Gutenberg Bible was first referred to as the 42-line Bible for purely technical reasons. The typesetting was prepared so that the text would appear in compact columns of exactly 42 lines.
The identical reprint of the Gutenberg Bible required countless hours of work by highly qualified professionals: craftsmen and artists who employed century-old methods first used by 15 th century printers and 16 th century papermakers.
Who was the man responsible for the greatest invention of all time?
To begin with, his real name was Johann Gensfleisch. His family home had a sign in front bearing the inscription, "Zu Guten Berg", meaning " the beautiful mountain", and this pseudonym became the accepted family name. His father was a master goldsmith and coinmaker for the Archbishop of Mainz and belonged to the city's wealthy class of families. The young Gutenberg was a gifted apprentice in his father' s shop, and quickly mastered the necessary skills for metalwork.
Gutenberg was born in Mainz between 1394 and 1399. Almost sixty years later, between 1452 and 1456, Gutenberg printed the first book ever - the Bible. He died in 1468.
Source: Pamphlet by Midwest Library Service, 11443 St. Charles Rock Road Bridgeton, MO 63044
