This post is about the methods of printing in the medieval times, the first printing press and the type of press used today for large scale publication.
In old times, before the development of printing mediums, knowledge and news were spread by handwritten manuscripts and scrolls. These ancient writings on papyrus and wood have given scholars great insights into the world of those times. They tell us about the life of the people in those times- the economy, the state of living, the scientific knowledge and technical expertise. Many royal edicts and inscriptions have been found that tell us about the rulers of those times- the expanse of their kingdoms, their amassed riches, the wars and conflicts, conquests and strategies adopted to keep subjects loyal and happy.
These inscriptions although very artistic and beautiful (as the rulers then liked it), were very tedious to write and time consuming. Every scroll, every manuscript, every copy of the manuscript was to be handwritten and bound. Court scribes were specially kept to write them again and again. Imagine J.K Rowling and her publishing team writing by hand and binding each and every copy of the 450 million sold of the Harry Potter series. The need for printing was very high. They say that necessity is the mother of invention. In came Johannes Gutenberg with the world’s first movable type printing press in 1439, which started the Printing Revolution and is considered to be the most important invention of the modern period. It revolutionized mass publishing and the way people gained knowledge and information about what was happening on the other side of the world. Having previously worked as a professional goldsmith, Gutenberg made skillful use of the knowledge of metals he had learned as a craftsman. He was the first to make an alloy of lead, tin and antimony, which was critical for producing durable type that produced high quality printed books and proved to be much better suited for printing than all other known materials. Gutenberg is also credited with the introduction of an oil-based ink which was more durable than the previously used water-based inks. Gutenberg used paper and vellum as printing material.
The Holy Bible was the world’s first book to be printed by this press and those printed copies were called as Gutenberg Bibles. In the Gutenberg Bible, Gutenberg made a trial of colored printing for a few of the page headings, present only in some copies. One Gutenberg press produced about 3600 pages per day as compared to the 1500 by woodblock painting- the method prevalent in Eastern Asia. By 1500AD, the Gutenberg press was employed in over 200 cities across Western Europe and the output rose to 150 to 200 million copies per day.
In the 19th century, the movable type Gutenberg press was replaced by the steam powered rotary presses which allowed printing on an industrial scale which became the sole medium of bulk printing all across the world. In such type of presses, the images to be printed are embossed on a rotating cylinder which comes in contact with ink and paper and hence the required prints are obtained. One of the most commonly used rotary printing methods is Offset Printing.
Offset Printing is a technique in which the inked image is transferred (or “offset”) from a plate to rubber blanket, then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithographic process, which is based on the repulsion of oil and water, the offset technique employs a flat image carrier on which the image to be printed obtains ink from ink rollers, while the non-printing area attracts a water-based film (called “fountain solution”), keeping the non- printing areas ink-free thus giving a sharp and contrasting image on the paper. This technique is used today for books, newspapers and all other kinds of stuff that needs mass printing. So the next time you wonder how millions and millions of newspapers are printed every day, you will k now how.
So this is it for this time. The next post will be about the current era of digitization of the printing and the vast world of e-books that have threatened the very existence of the classic paperback. Till then, see ya.
-Anurag Bagga
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