History of Books and Libraries Highlights

People or period Approximate Kinds of writing; Forms of the Kinds of Examples of Examples of
dates materials used book libraries libraries writing
Prehistory Pictographs Cave paintings
Landmarks
Word of mouth
ANTIQUITY 3600 B.C. Cuneiform Clay Tablet Temple Telloh Code of
Sumerians Clay Clay cylinder Government Borsippa Hammurabi
Babylonians 626 B.C. Stylus Private Nineveh
Assyrians Royal
Egyptians 3000 B.C. Hieroglyphic Roll Temple Gizeh Prisse Papyrus
writing Government Thebes Harris Papyrus
Papyrus sheets Private Inscriptions
Reed brush, inks
Alphabet of 24
consonants
Phoenicians 2756 B.C. Alphabet of 22 Roll
consonants Sheet
Papyrus
Chinese 3d millennium Ideographic Tablet Temple
B.C. characters Roll
Bone, bamboo,
silk, linen
Greeks (Crete) 2D millennium Linear A Tablet
B.C. Linear B
Greeks 6th Century B.C.- Phoenician Roll Private Alexandrian
146 B.C. alphabet; added Wax tablet Royal Library
vowels Codex Government Library at
Papyrus, vellum, Pergamum
parchment, wax- Aristotle’s
 coated boards library
Romans 753 B.C.- 476 Greek alphabet Roll Private Ulpian library
A.D. Papyrus, vellum, Codex Government
parchment, wax- Diptych Public
coated boards, Wax tablet Christian
quill Pagan
MIDDLE AGES
Monasteries 400 A.D. Alphabet Roll Church Book of Kells
Western 12th Century Handwriting; Codex Monastery
Europe after Christ different styles at Royal
Ireland each monastery Private
England Plain and dyed,
vellum,
parchment;
illumination
12th century to Handwritten Roll Private University of Book of Hours
15th century books Codex Royal Paris Greek and Latin
Renaissance Parchment, Church works
vellum Monastery
University
Invention of 15th century Printing with Handwritten Public Gutenberg Bible
printing with movable types books; printed Private
movable types Parchment books; printed Government
Vellum leaflets; Royal
Paper calendars
1500-1900
Europe Printing Handwritten National Vatican Library
Paper books; printed Private Oxford
books; Public Cambridge
periodicals; University British Museum
maps; Royal Bibliotheque
pamphlets; Nationale
newspapers
America 1607-1776 Printing with Printed books College Harvard Bay Psalm Book
movable types Almanacs University Yale
(1639) Magazines Private William and
Paper Government Subscription Mary
publications Princeton
Pamphlets
Broadsides
America 18th and 19th Printing Printed Books College Library of
centuries Paper Paperbacks University Congress
Broadsides Private Boston Public
Pamphlets Public Library
Almanacs Government
Magazines
Maps
Government
publications
America 20th century Printing Printed books Academic New York
Paper Periodicals Special Public Library
Film Audio, visual, Public Folger
Tapes audiovisual School Shakespeare
Disks forms Research Major university
Computer Microforms Private libraries
printing Databases Government Major public
Microforms Video forms Rare-book libraries
Magnetic tape archives Library of
Congress