Johann Gutenberg

Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg (born. circa 1398 – died probably February 3, 1468 Mainz) was a German metal-worker and inventor who achieved fame for his contributions to the technology of printing during the 1440s, including a type metal alloy and oil-based inks, a mould for casting type accurately, and a new kind of printing press based on presses used in wine-making. Tradition credits him with inventing movable type in Europe, an improvement on the block printing already in use there. By combining these elements into a production system, he allowed for the rapid printing of written materials and an information explosion in Renaissance Europe.

External links

• English Homepage of the Gutenberg-Museum Mainz / Germany
• BL.uk - 'Diamond Sutra' (world?s oldest surviving complete dated printed book, circa AD 868)
• Silk-Road.com - 'Printing' (historical overview of printing)
• UTexas.edu - 'The Digital Gutenberg Project' (the Gutenberg Bible in 1,300 digital images, every page of University of Texas copy)
• HistoireetGeographie.free.fr - 'Biographie de Johannes Gutenberg, inventeur de l'Imprimerie' (a French biography of Gutenberg)