HISTORY OF THE

PRINTER.
By Harvey Taylor

1457: first printer.

Peter Schoeffer was a principal worker in Johann Gutenberg's printing house in Mainz.
As a young man he had been sent to Paris by Johann Fust to train as a calligrapher
and engraver and later he married Fust's daughter, Christina. Schoeffer's close
association with Fust has led to speculation that Gutenberg was the victim of a
conspiracy to gain insider knowledge of the process and ultimately to take control of
the printing presses. Whatever the true story, Fust and Schoeffer entered into
partnership, capitalized on the new process and developed the art of type-founding
and the process of printing in more than one colour. The first book published by the
firm was a Psalter (a volume containing the Book of Psalms, used in church services),
produced in two versions in 1457. The Mainz Psalter is the first printed book to bear a
date. Only ten copies survive (and a host of fragments), all printed on vellum.

Fust died in 1467 and Schoeffer continued the business under his own name but in
partnership with Fust's sons. In about 1469 he issued the earliest known bookseller's
advertisement, which listed the printed books available from his printing house.

Schoeffer's business continuously expanded. While he continued to print books in

Mainz, and to experiment with printing techniques, he also devoted considerable
energy to extending his business throughout Europe. When he died in 1503 his son
Johann took over the business.

1501:italic typed first

used.

Italic type was first used by Aldus Manutius and

the Aldine Press in 1500, in the frontispiece of an
edition of Catherine of Siena's letters (although
the first complete book in italic was an edition of
Virgil dedicated to Italy, published the following
year). According to Lynne Truss, Manutius invented
the italic typeface. Based on the humanist cursive
script first developed in the 1420s by Niccol de'
Niccoli, it served as a condensed type for simple,
compact volumes. The punches for these types
were cut by Francesco da Bologna (whose
surname was Griffo).

1970

We introduced this breakthrough

technology which transfers images using
an electrostatic charge and toner-instead
of ink and pressure-and enables the
seamless rendering of digital documents
onto paper. We introduced two-side
coping, which reduces paper costs, saves
paper storage space and lessens the
environmental impacts of making and
using paper.