Movable type

Movable type is a special way of printing that uses tiny, movable pieces to make words and pictures on paper. These pieces can be rearranged to create different pages and books. This invention changed how people share information and made books more available to everyone.

The idea of movable type was very important in history. It helped spread knowledge and ideas when most books were handwritten and very rare. Thanks to this technology, more people could learn to read and get important information.

People use the words "movable type" to describe this printing method. In some places, like Britain, they might say "moveable type," but it means the same thing. This system uses small parts, often letters and marks, to build up lines of text that can then be printed onto paper.

This clever invention made it easier and faster to produce books and other printed materials. It helped education, science, and culture by letting more people share and receive information.

Overview

The world's first movable type printing technology for paper books was made of porcelain and was invented around 1040 AD in China during the Northern Song dynasty by the inventor Bi Sheng.

Later, in the 12th century, metal copper movable type was used in a document from the Jin Dynasty.

In the 14th century, Korea used movable type to print the Jikji in 1377.

In around 1450, German goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg invented the metal movable-type printing press in Europe. His press used a special mix of lead, tin, and antimony to make the type pieces. This new method was faster and made clearer letters. The Gutenberg Bible helped spread the use of printing presses around the world.

Precursors to movable type

Letter punch and coins

People started making many copies of symbols or letters with a hard metal punch around 3000 BC in ancient Sumer. These metal punches were like early tools used for printing with movable metal type. Cylinder seals were rolled on wet clay to leave an impression.

Seals and stamps

Main articles: Mudbrick stamp, Cylinder seal, and Phaistos Disc

Seals and stamps might be early forms of movable type. Some old stamps found in Mesopotamian cities like Uruk and Larsa, made around the 2nd millennium BC, show uneven spacing that suggests they used movable type. The Phaistos Disc from around 1800–1600 BC in Minoan culture might be one of the earliest examples of using reusable characters to print. In the West, people used personal or official seals to sign documents, a practice that continued until the 19th century.

In China, seals have been used since the Shang dynasty. By the Western Zhou period, seal stamps were placed in blocks for making bronze casts. Later, they were used to print on pottery. During the Northern dynasties, there were wooden seals with up to 120 characters. These seals had religious meanings. They were also used to mark food for protection.

Woodblock printing

Main article: Woodblock printing

Before paper was invented during the Han dynasty in China, people wrote on bones, shells, bamboo, metal, stone, and silk. Paper made writing easier and more portable, but copying books by hand was still hard work. Around 172–178 AD, during the Xiping Era, sealing print and monotype were used to print designs on fabric and text.

By the 8th century during the Tang dynasty, woodblock printing was invented. First, a neat hand-copied script was stuck to a thick, smooth board. The paper was thin enough to see the characters in reverse. Carvers then cut away the parts of the board that were not part of the character, leaving the characters raised. When printing, ink was spread on the raised characters, and paper was placed over them. By moving the paper gently, the characters were printed. Woodblock printing became very popular during the Song dynasty. However, it had some problems. Carving the printing plate took a lot of time, effort, and materials. It was also hard to store the plates and to fix mistakes.

History

Further information: Letterpress printing and History of printing in East Asia

Ceramic movable type

Bi Sheng (990–1051) made the first known movable-type system for printing in China around 1040 AD, during the Northern Song dynasty. He used ceramic materials.

After Bi Sheng died, ceramic movable type may have spread to the Tangut kingdom of Western Xia. A Buddhist text found in modern Wuwei, Gansu, dates to the time of Emperor Renzong of Western Xia (r. 1125-1193). The text shows traits of ceramic movable type. The ceramic movable-type also passed to Bi Sheng's family.

Wooden movable type

Bi Sheng (990–1051) of the Song dynasty also made wooden movable type around 1040 AD. But this technology stopped because of problems with the wood.

In 1298, Wang Zhen (王禎), an official of the Yuan dynasty from Jingde County, Anhui Province, China, made more than 30,000 wooden movable types. He printed 100 copies of Records of Jingde County. Soon after, he wrote about his invention in his book A method of making moveable wooden types for printing books.

Metal movable type

China

At least 13 finds in China show that bronze movable type printing was invented there no later than the 12th century.

The 1298 book Zao Huozi Yinshufa (《造活字印書法》) by the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368) official Wang Zhen mentions tin movable type. This was probably used since the Southern Song dynasty (1127–1279), but mostly tested.

During the Mongol Empire (1206–1405), printing using movable type spread to the Uyghurs of Central Asia.

During the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), Hua Sui used bronze type in printing books in 1490. In 1574, the large 1000-volume encyclopedia Imperial Readings of the Taiping Era (《太平御覧》) was printed with bronze movable type.

In 1725 the Qing dynasty government made 250,000 bronze movable-type characters. They printed 64 sets of the encyclopedic Complete Classics Collection of Ancient China (《古今圖書集成》). Each set had 5,040 volumes.

Korea

In 1234, the first books known to be printed with metal type were made in Goryeo dynasty Korea. They are a set of ritual books, Sangjeong Gogeum Yemun, made by Ch'oe Yun-ŭi.

While these books have not survived, Jikji, printed in Korea in 1377, is thought to be the oldest book printed with metal movable type. Research from 2022 suggests that a copy of the Song of Enlightenment with Commentaries by Buddhist Monk Nammyeong Cheon, printed in 1239, may also have been printed in metal type.

Europe

Main articles: History of Western typography and Spread of European movable type printing

Johannes Gutenberg of the Free City of Mainz in the Holy Roman Empire invented the printing press, using a metal movable type system. Gutenberg, a goldsmith, used skills for cutting punches from moulds. Between 1436 and 1450 he developed tools and methods for making letters from matrices using a device called the hand mould.

Gutenberg's movable-type printing system spread quickly across Europe. It grew from one printing press in Mainz in 1457 to 110 presses by 1480, with 50 of them in Italy. Venice became a main centre for printing.

Type-founding

Stages

Type-founding is the way people make letters and shapes for printing. It has three main steps:

Punchcutting

First, a design is made on a tiny tool called a punch. If the letter has spaces inside, like the letter "O", a special tool called a counterpunch makes those spaces. The punch is then made strong.

Matrix

Next, the punch is used to shape a soft metal block called a matrix. This matrix will hold the shape of the letter.

Casting

Finally, the matrix is placed into a mould, and hot metal (mostly lead and tin) is poured in. Once the metal cools, a small block of type, called a sort, is taken out and shaped to the right size for printing.

National traditions

Different countries used slightly different sizes for their printing type. For example, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the U.S. used one size, while France, Germany, and Switzerland used another. These small differences could change how bold the printed letters looked.

By the end of the 19th century, only a few type foundries were left in the Netherlands. Each had its own size, which kept their customers loyal to one or the other. In 1905, the Dutch government decided to use a standard size for all printing.

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Typesetting

Main articles: Typesetting and Type case

In the late 1800s, factories made movable type for printing shops. These letters were kept in special drawers called job cases. They had many small boxes for different letters. The most common design in America was called the California Job Case.

Big letters, called capitals, were kept in a separate drawer above the others. This is why we call them "upper case" letters today. The drawers also had blank blocks called spacers. These spacers helped separate words and fill out lines of text. They came in different sizes.

Letters were put together into words and lines using a tool called a composing stick. When a whole page was ready, it was called a forme. The forme was placed on a printing press, ink was added, and paper was pressed to make prints. Special characters not found in the usual type cases were called "sorts."

Metal type combined with other methods

People sometimes think that metal letters for printing replaced all older ways of making prints. But when factories became more common, people picked the best printing method for each job. For big letters, like those in posters, metal letters were too heavy and expensive. So, big letters were often made from carved wood blocks or special plates. In some cases, it was easier to ask a sign painter to paint the letters instead of printing them.

Pictures could be printed with the moving letters if they were made from woodcuts or wood engravings, as long as the wood pieces were the same height as the letters. If special printing methods, like using copper plates, were used for the pictures, then the pictures and the words needed to be printed separately on different machines.