Of ink and paper

In 1455, Gutenberg and Fust devoted themselves actively to the “Work of the Books” (Werck der Bucher). This seem-

ingly anodyne phrase used in a legal docu- ment by a Mainz notary marked the start of a major revolution. First attested to a few decades earlier in Korea, a printing process had been developed in Strasbourg which was to result in the prestigious 42-line Bible. It was the culmination of a period of experi- mentation which led from the earliest wood- cuts to books printed with moveable metal type. Henceforward, it was merely a case of honing the technique – and attempting to control the dissemination of knowledge and ideas through regulation. Over the course of more than five centuries, the printing industry has expanded exponentially, mak- ing and breaking intellectual, literary and financial fortunes.

But what do we really know about the his- tory of this remarkable phenomenon, an intellectual achievement in its own right that has drawn on countless different fields of

expertise? The printed book inspires reflec- tion and reverie, is sometimes judged a mas- terpiece and at other times humdrum, and can be showered with praise or criticism. It may be regulated and sometimes censored, cost a fortune or virtually nothing, be sto- len, collected, categorised, and even pulped. This long and complex story is recounted by three experts through the prism of the latest research and accompanied by a rich range of rare illustrations. We are reminded that ever since the dawn of the printing press all the way up to the 21st century, the book has constantly revolutionised the practices of reading and writing, the use of language and the universe of images, and that it has left an indelible material and ideological mark on society, the imagination and our collective memories. And the authors ele- gantly and vigorously make the case for the printed book in an era when digital publish- ing could usurp the unchallenged hegemony of the printed book over access to thought and its dissemination.