About
Johannes Gutenberg's movable type printing press (c. 1440–1450) was arguably the most consequential technological invention of the last millennium. Before the printing press, books were copied by hand — a single Bible took a monk years; after, identical texts could be produced by hundreds. The first major printed book was the Gutenberg Bible (1455), of which 49 copies survive.
The printing press enabled the Protestant Reformation (Luther's 95 Theses spread across Germany in two weeks), the Scientific Revolution (scientists could share findings internationally), the Enlightenment (cheap political pamphlets), and eventually democracy (newspapers, public literacy, popular opinion). It broke the Church's monopoly on knowledge. Mark Twain called it 'the mightiest engine that has ever been brought to bear upon civilization.'
# Top 10 Printing Press facts
- 1The Gutenberg Bible (1455) is the world's most valuable printed book — copies have sold for $25–30 million
- 2Luther's 95 Theses spread from Wittenberg to most of Germany within 2 weeks due to the printing press
- 3China had movable type printing 400 years before Gutenberg — but its thousands of characters made it less practical
Fascinating Facts
- ◆The Gutenberg Bible (1455) is the world's most valuable printed book — copies have sold for $25–30 million
- ◆Luther's 95 Theses spread from Wittenberg to most of Germany within 2 weeks due to the printing press
- ◆China had movable type printing 400 years before Gutenberg — but its thousands of characters made it less practical
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