The First Printing Press
The printing press is a machine that was made to print images and text on paper by applying pressure to a surface of ink. This ended up transferring the ink from the inked surface to a paper.
Johannes Gutenburg built the first printing press in 1950. It incorporated movable type and mechanized inking to make it more efficient. The printing press revolutionized society because it was able to share a lot of information through printing copies, accurately and quickly. It spread important knowledge for many people and kept the public more informed about what was happening.
So how does this invention work?
- Movable type (type that carries single letters) was arranged over a flat wooden plate
- Ink was applied onto the type and paper was laid on top
- Another wooden plate was brought to meet the 1st one
- The two wooden plates were pressed together to push the paper and type together, creating images on the paper
The printing press is so important to our society today. Imagine what we would have to do without printers!
Our printers have evolved a lot from then. They are now fully self-automated!
These modern printers could not be created without the blueprint of the first printing press. The same mechanics are still used, but in a much faster and efficient way. Printers are also now available to every person because of their much smaller size and manufacturing time.
Want to learn more about how the printing press works? Check out this MEL Science kit teaching more about the printing press. You can build your own at home!
Here’s an example of how it works!
Have fun building!
