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JHON GABRIEL CLOUD P.

PULANCO

Grade 4- Orchids

Johannes Gutenberg

Gutenberg was born in the German city of Mainz, the youngest son of
the patrician merchant Friele Gensfleisch zur Laden, and his second wife, Else
Wyrich, who was the daughter of a shopkeeper. It is assumed that he was baptized
in the area close to his birthplace of St. Christoph. According to some accounts,
Friele was a goldsmith for the bishop at Mainz, but most likely, he was involved in
the cloth trade. Gutenberg's year of birth is not precisely known, but it was
sometime between the years of 1394 and 1404. In the 1890s the city of Mainz
declared his official and symbolic date of birth to be June 24, 1400.
In 1411, there was an uprising in Mainz against the patricians, and more than
a hundred families were forced to leave. As a result, the Gutenbergs are thought to
have moved to Eltville am Rhein (Alta Villa), where his mother had an inherited
estate. According to historian Heinrich Wallau, "All that is known of his youth is
that he was not in Mainz in 1430. It is presumed that he migrated for political
reasons to Strasbourg, where the family probably had connections." He is assumed
to have studied at the University of Erfurt, where there is a record of the enrolment
of a student called Johannes de Altavilla in 1418—Altavilla is the Latin form of
Eltville am Rhein.
Nothing is now known of Gutenberg's life for the next fifteen years, but in
March 1434, a letter by him indicates that he was living in Strasbourg, where he
had some relatives on his mother's side. He also appears to have been a goldsmith
member enrolled in the Strasbourg militia. In 1437, there is evidence that he was
instructing a wealthy tradesman on polishing gems, but where he had acquired this
knowledge is unknown. In 1436/37 his name also comes up in court in connection
with a broken promise of marriage to a woman from Strasbourg, Ennelin. Whether
the marriage actually took place is not recorded.
Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg was a German blacksmith,
goldsmith, inventor, printer, and publisher who introduced printing to Europe with
the printing press. His introduction of mechanical movable type printing to Europe
started the Printing Revolution and is regarded as a milestone of the second
millennium, ushering in the modern period of human history. It played a key role
in the development of the Renaissance, Reformation, the Age of Enlightenment,
and the scientific revolution and laid the material basis for the modern knowledge-
based economy and the spread of learning to the masses.

Replica of the Gutenberg Press

Gutenberg in 1439 was the first European to use movable type. Among his
many contributions to printing are: the invention of a process for mass-producing
movable type; the use of oil-based ink for printing books; adjustable molds;
mechanical movable type; and the use of a wooden printing press similar to the
agricultural screw presses of the period. His truly epochal invention was the
combination of these elements into a practical system that allowed the mass
production of printed books and was economically viable for printers and readers
alike. Gutenberg's method for making type is traditionally considered to have
included a type metal alloy and a hand mould for casting type. The alloy was a
mixture of lead, tin, and antimony that melted at a relatively low temperature for
faster and more economical casting, cast well, and created a durable type.

In Renaissance Europe, the arrival of mechanical movable type printing


introduced the era of mass communication which permanently altered the structure
of society. The relatively unrestricted circulation of information—including
revolutionary ideas—transcended borders, captured the masses in the Reformation
and threatened the power of political and religious authorities; the sharp increase in
literacy broke the monopoly of the literate elite on education and learning and
bolstered the emerging middle class. Across Europe, the increasing cultural self-
awareness of its people led to the rise of proto-nationalism, accelerated by the
flowering of the European vernacular languages to the detriment of Latin's status
as lingua franca. In the 19th century, the replacement of the hand-operated
Gutenberg-style press by steam-powered rotary presses allowed printing on an
industrial scale, while Western-style printing was adopted all over the world,
becoming practically the sole medium for modern bulk printing.

The use of movable type was a marked improvement on the handwritten


manuscript, which was the existing method of book production in Europe, and
upon woodblock printing, and revolutionized European book-making. Gutenberg's
printing technology spread rapidly throughout Europe and later the world.

His major work, the Gutenberg Bible (also known as the 42-line Bible),
was the first printed version of the Bible and has been acclaimed for its high
aesthetic and technical quality.

Later life

In January 1465, Gutenberg's achievements were recognized and he was given


the title Hofmann (gentleman of the court) by von Nassau. This honor included a
stipend, an annual court outfit, as well as 2,180 litres of grain and 2,000 litres of
wine tax-free. It is believed he may have moved back to Mainz around this time,
but this is not certain.

Gutenberg died in 1468 and was buried in the Franciscan church at Mainz, his
contributions largely unknown. This church and the cemetery were later destroyed,
and Gutenberg's grave is now lost.

In 1504, he was mentioned as the inventor of typography in a book by


Professor Ivo Wittig. It was not until 1567 that the first portrait of Gutenberg,
almost certainly an imaginary reconstruction, appeared in Heinrich Pantaleon's
biography of famous Germans.
Richard March Hoe

Richard March Hoe was born in New York on September 12, 1812. He was an
American inventor from New York City who designed a rotary printing press and
related advancements, including the "Hoe web perfecting press" in 1871; it used a
continuous roll of paper and revolutionized newspaper publishing.

Hoe's 6-cylinder press, from N.


Orr's History of the Processes of Manufacture (1864)
His father, with brothers-in-law Peter and Matthew Smith, established a steam-
powered manufactory of printing presses in New York City. At the age of fifteen,
Richard joined their enterprise. Several years later in 1833, he became a senior
member of his father's firm R. Hoe & Company. After his father's death that year,
Hoe became head of the company. He was joined later by his younger brother
Robert Hoe II (1815-1884).

Richard Hoe married and had a family, eventually living in a manor house on 53
acres in the Bronx. Hoe died on June 7, 1886, in Florence, Italy.

Early on, Hoe added the production of steel saws to his business and introduced
improvements to their manufacture. In 1837, he visited England and obtained a
patent for a better process of grinding saws. In connection with his factory, Hoe
established an apprentice's school where free instruction was given.

He is most well-known for his invention in 1843 of a rotary printing press: type
was placed on a revolving cylinder, a design that could print much faster than the
old flatbed printing press. It received U.S. Patent 5,199 in 1847, and was placed in
commercial use the same year. Arunah Shepherdson Abell, publisher of The Sun in
Baltimore, was among the first to buy it and put it into use. In its early days, it was
variously called the "Hoe lightning press," and "Hoe's Cylindrical-Bed Press."

Hoe's 6-cylinder press, from N. Orr's History of the Processes of Manufacture


(1864)

R. Hoe & Co printing press and saw works, Columbia Street, near East River

In 1870 Hoe developed a rotary press that printed both sides of a page in a single
operation, what he called the "Hoe web perfecting press." Hoe's press used a
continuous roll of paper five miles long, which was put through the machine at the
rate of 800 feet (240 m) a minute. As the roll emerged, it passed over a knife which
cut pages apart; they were next run through an apparatus which folded the pages
for the mail or for carriers. These completely printed and folded newspapers were
delivered as quickly as the eye could follow them.[1] It produced 18,000 papers an
hour and was used the first time by the New York Tribune.
Hoe was a Freemason. He died while traveling in 1886 in Florence, Italy. His
nephew, Robert Hoe (1839–1909), wrote a notable Short History of the Printing
Press (1902). He also made further improvements in printing.

Although Hoe was known for his rotary printing press, he also had lots of practice
before, since he took on his fathers work after he retired, he perfected many
cylinder presses, and he continued to improve, eventually creating his prize
invention, the hoe lightning press
Friedrich Koenig

Friedrich Gottlob Koenig was born April 17, 1774 in Eisleben, Germany, although
he moved to London in the early 1800’s. He was a German inventor best known
for his high-speed steam-powered printing press, which he built together with
watchmaker Andreas Friedrich Bauer. This new style of printing press could print
up to 1,100 sheets per hour, printing on both sides of the paper at the same time.

Koenig's 1814 steam-powered printing press


After a good education, he was bound apprentice for five years to Breitkopf and
Hartel, of Leipzig, as compositor/printer. After four years and three months he was
released from his engagement, because of his exceptional ability. He then worked
for a number of other printers, as was customary in that country then, acquiring
additional skills, before returning to his original employer. Shortly thereafter, he
enrolled himself for a year at Leipzig University. According to Koenig's own
colourful account, in 1802 he first began to devise ways and means for improving
the art of printing by eliminating some of the "horse-work".

He moved to London in 1804 and in 1810 was granted a patent on his press, which
produced its first trial run in April 1812.The machine was set up in their workshop,
and invitations sent out to potential customers, notably John Walter of The Times.
Amidst much secrecy, for fear of upsetting the existing pressmen, trials were
carried out with great success. The first issue of The Times printed with the new
presses was published on 29 November 1814.

In August 1817 Koenig returned to Germany because of a disagreement with


Thomas Bensley, a London book printer partner, who Koenig believed sought sole
rights to the new machine. After consideration he chose an abandoned monastery
in Würzburg for the premises of the factory. The firm was called Koenig & Bauer.

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