by Peter Schoeffer at Mainz before 1456, which, according to its
colophon, was finished “Arte nova imprimendi seu caracterizandi
(from character＝letter) . . . absque calami exaratione.”
Fust and Schoeffer said of the Mainz Psalter of 1457 that
Earliest Definitions of Printing.
it was formed by an “adinventio artificiosa imprimendi
ac caracterizandi absque calami ulla exaratione.” The
colophon of the Catholicon of 1460 says that the book was printed
“non calami, stili, aut pennae suffragio, sed mira patronarum
formarumque concordia, proporcione, ac modulo.” In 1462 Albrecht
Pfister says that he had “gedrucket” the Four Histories. Fust and
Schoeffer say of the Liber Sextus Decretalium, published in 1465,
that it was completed “non atramento (“atramento communi”
in the Justinianus of 1468 and 1472), plumali canna neque aerea,
sed artificiosa quadam adinventione imprimendi seu caracterizandi,”
which phrase they slightly varied in Cicero’s Officia, issued in the
same year: “non atramento, plumali canna neque aerea, sed arte
quadam perpulcra.” The edition of St Jerome’s Epistles of 1470
is said to have been completed by an “ars impressoria,” the Decretum
Gratiani of 1472 by an “ars quaedam ingeniosa imprimendi,” the
Dyalogus of 1478 by an “ars magistra.” We find further—“ars
sancta” or “divina,” “nova ars scribendi,” “novum exscribendi
genus prope divinum,” “sculptoria archetyporum ars,” “ars
mirifica formandi,” “ars excusoria,” “nova imprimendi ratio,”
“ars pressurae,” “chalcotypa ars,” “chalcographia” (1472 and
later), “chalcographia excusoria impressoriaque,” “libraria
impressio,” “empryntynge” (Caxton, 1482), “prenterei (Schoeffer,
1492), “truckery” (1505), “impression des livres” (1498), and
“prenten.”
The early printers called themselves, or were called by others, “librorum prothocaragmatici” (Gramm. Rhythm., 1468), “impressores librorum,” “exsculptor librorum” (Jenson, 1471), “chalcographus” (1463; Hain 13036), “magister artis impressoriae,” “boeckprinter”; and during the 16th century we find them still frequently called “chalcotypus” and Printers. “chalcographus.”
The types were at first designated more by negative than positive expressions. In 1468 they were called “caragma,” later on “caracter” or “character,” “archetipae notae” (1473; Hain 13036), “sculptoria archetyporum ars,” “chalcotypa ars,” “formae,” “artificiosissimae imprimendorum librorum formae.” We soon hear also of the process and material by which Types. they were produced. The Grammatica of 1468, published by Schoeffer, says that it was “cast” (sum fusus libellus). In 1471 "aeneae formulae” are spoken of; and Bernardus Cenninus and his son testify that they had printed the Virgil “expressis ante calibe caracteribus et deinde fusis literis” (with letters first cut into steel and then cast). In 1473 Friedrich Creusner at Nuremberg states that he had “cut” (sculpsit) the work of Diogenes (Hain 6192). Johan Zeiner of Ulm says in 1474 that he had perfected a book, not with the pen, but with letters of metal (stagneis caracteribus). In 1474 Joh. Ph. de Lignamine speaks of “metallicae formae.” In 1476 Husner of Strassburg represents the Nider as being printed with “letters cut of metal (litteris sculptis artificiali certe conatu ex aere).” Nicolas Jenson printed in 1480 with letters “cut and cast” (sculptis ac conflatis).
The word typographus seems to occur for the first time in 1486, in the preface of P. Stephanus Dulcinius Scalae to the Astronomicon of Manilius, printed in that year at Milan by Antonius Zarotus;[1] in 1498 Erasmus uses it in a letter (dated Feb. 13) to Christianus, a Lübeck merchant;[2] and in 1517 Word “Typography.” Johan Schoeffer applies the word to himself in the colophon of the Aeneas Sylvius published by him. But of the use of the word typographia no earlier instance is known than 1520, in which year Gerardus Noviomagus (＝Geldenhaurius) in his Lucubratiuncula de Batavorum Insula (pref. to Nicol. Buscoducensis, dated 1520) says: “inventa Germanorum . . . bombarda videlicet, typographia, pyxis chartaque nautica”; and Johan Schott, a printer of Strassburg, in the Geogr. Ptolem. published by him, describes his grandfather, Johan Mentelin, as “primus typographiae inventor.” Gerardus, it may be added, borrowed the whole passage from Pet. Montanus (li. 1 Adag., published an. 1504), who has chalcographia instead of typographia. Meerman indeed[3] speaks of a use of the word typographia (or at least of typographus) earlier than 1520, and refers to the preface of Bernardinus Veronensis in the edition of Tibullus, Catullus and Propertius published at Venice in 1493 by Symon Bevilaqua, “at least,” Meerman adds, “as it (the preface) is read in the Annal. typogr. of Maittaire, i. 560, 2nd ed.” But on page 560 Maittaire quotes the first two lines of Bernardinus’s preface (till dicit) and then adds: “Graecis characteribus destitutus, typographus necesse habuit hiatus in commentario hic illic relinquere,” which is evidently Maittaire’s own remark, not that of Bernardinus. The present writer at least has been unable to find such a passage in the Tibullus.
When we, for the moment, leave out of sight the question as to when, where, and by whom the art was invented, and take our stand on well-authenticated dates in such printed documents as have been preserved, we find that the first printed date, 1454, occurs in two different editions of the same letter of indulgence issued in that year by Pope Nicholas V. in behalf of the kingdom of Cyprus.
These two editions bear no printer’s name, nor the place of printing, but are distinguished respectively as the 31-line and the 30-line Indulgence. The one with 31 lines claims priority[4] from a chronological point of view, over the one with 30 lines, because one of the sold copies that has been Nicholas V.’s Indulgence of 1454. preserved was issued at Erfurt on the 22nd of October 1454 (in the possession of Herr Ernst Fischer at Weinheim, Centralbl., 1909, p. 30); a second (in the Hanover Archives; Veröffentl. II. tab. i.) at Fritzlar on the 12th of November 1454; a third (in the Mus. Meerman, at the Hague) at Erfurt on the 15th of November 1454, &c., whereas of the 30-line Indulgence the earliest sold copy that has as yet come down to us was issued at Cologne on the 27th of February 1455, though it has the printed date mccccliiii., which was altered with the pen to mccccliiiij. In the 31-line Indulgence occur (a) a large church type used for the headings and commencing words of the absolutions, for the first word in the document and for the Christian name of the pope’s legate; (b) a smaller text or brief type for the text; (c) a large initial V and two large initials M, which slightly differ from each other. In the 30-line Indulgence occur (a) a large church type, used as in the 31-line Indulgence; (b) a smaller text or brief type for the text; (c) a large initial U, and two large initials M differing from each other.
These two different editions are usually regarded as having been printed at Mainz; and, in the absence of any evidence to the contrary, we assume that such really was the fact. But we must at the same time conclude that about October 1454 there were at least two rival printers at work there: (1) the printer of the 31-line Indulgence, who may have been Johan Mainz Printing. Gutenberg, perhaps subsidized by Johan Fust; (2) the printer of the 30-line Indulgence, who was no doubt Peter (Schoeffer), de Gernssheym, as this Indulgence is connected with one of 1489 printed by him. Four written copies of this 1454 Indulgence are known to exist which respectively bear the dates: Frankfurt, 10th April 1454 (in the possession of Herr Lais, Wiesbaden); Frankfurt, 11th April 1454 (Frankfurt Archives); 11th July 1454 (place unknown; Darmstadt archives); Lübeck, 6th October 1454. As their dates precede by a few weeks only the earliest known date (Oct. 22, 1454) on a printed copy, they mark, perhaps, the exact time when printing made its appearance at Mainz, in an already advanced state of perfection.
Basing ourselves on the above Indulgences with their printed date, and four different types, we subjoin two lists of the books which the German bibliographers of the present day regard as having all been printed by Johan Gutenberg at Mainz, in the types or “developments” of them, employed for these Indulgences. They are arranged in two columns (A and B) according to types, but without regard to strict or supposed chronology. For further details cf. Hessels, Gutenberg (1882), p. 150 sqq.; Schwenke, Berlin Festschr. (and in the Veröffentl. of the Mainz Gutenberg-Gesellsch.); Zedler (Gutenberg-Forsch. and in the Veröffentl.), &c.
| A. | B. | |
|
Types: I (large church type, also called the 36-line Bible type) and II (smaller brief type), used by an unknown printer, not later than October 1454. i. 31-line Indulgence; three different issues (A, B, C), with the printed year mccccliiii., and one issue (D) with the printed year mcccclv. All printed on vellum. Of issues A and B no sold copies have yet come to light; but three unsold copies of each are preserved at Brunswick, Wolfenbüttel and Hanover (Culemann coll.). Of issue C ten sold copies are known to exist in various libraries with dates ranging from the 22nd of October 1454 to April 1455, besides three unused copies. Of issue D ten sold copies with dates from the 7th of March 1455 to the 30th of April 1455 and four unused copies are known. |
Types. III (large church type, somewhat smaller than Type I, also called the 42-line Bible type) and IV (a smaller brief type), used by Peter Schoeffer de Gernssheym (1454–1455). i. 30-line Indulgence; one issue (A) with the printed year mccccliiii., and two issues (B, C) with the printed year mccccl-quinto. All printed on vellum. Of issue A only one copy has been discovered (now in the Rylands-Spencer Library), which was sold at Cologne on the 27th of February 1455, the printed date mccccliiii having been altered with the pen to mccccliiiij. Of issue B two sold copies, with dates April 11 and 29, 1455, are in the Berlin Library and the British Museum. Of issue C a sold copy with date April 24, 1455 is at Wolfenbüttel. |
