Stephan Füssel - Böcker

From typefounding through typesetting to the printing process itself, this narrative offers a fresh look at the unprecedented success story of the spread of the 'black art' right across Europe in a mere 40 years. Stephan Füssel here analyses the first early printings, placing them in the context of the history of communication and the intellectual climate of a Europe-wide educated elite by about 1500. He foregrounds the tremendous rise in European culture and the history of education experienced as a direct result of this media revolution. In separate chapters Füssel depicts the fast spreading of the art of printing to Italy, France and England, at the same time highlighting the importance of the art of printing for the Roman Catholic Church, the Reformation, the University and the economy. From herbals to a guide for midwives, the present book shows popular instruction at work in the vernacular, as well as the consolidation of knowledge into encyclopedias in the early modern period, and the emergence of new forms of the prose novel and the beginnings of newspapers and periodicals. Finally Stephan Füssel traces the modern resonances of Gutenberg's invention, which persisted in virtually unchanged form for a further 350 years. It underwent decisive technological change through industrialisation and mechanisation in the nineteenth century, and again through digitalisation at the close of the twentieth century. However, as Füssel shows, the mass diffusion of information and the related communications revolution which began with Gutenberg continue unabated.

Johannes Gutenberg (c. 1400-1468) is widely heralded as one of the most influential men of the last millennium. His invention, a printing press with mechanical moving type, had an unprecedented impact on the political and cultural history of Europe and beyond. But despite his significance, a rigorous and accessible biography has not been published in English – until now.Charting Gutenberg’s life from his youth in Mainz to his final years and lasting legacy, Stephan Füssel – one of Europe’s leading experts on Gutenberg – brings together authoritative scholarship and historical detail to illuminate the life of this fascinating figure. This short biography contains everything you need to know about the man who changed the printed word, and the world, forever.

This text presents a history of the Leipzig publisher and printer, G.J. Goschen, giving insights into the structure of publishing in the age of Goethe.

Hartmann Schedel’s Weltchronik, or Chronicle of the World (better known today as the Nuremberg Chronicle, after the German city in which it was created), was a groundbreaking encyclopedic work and at the time the most lavishly illustrated book ever printed in Europe. Both a historical reference work and a contemporary inventory of urban culture at the end of the 15th century, the Chronicle was to have a remarkable influence on the cultural, ecclesiastical and intellectual history of the Middle Ages. It was particularly notable for its more than 1,800 woodcut illustrations depicting events from the Bible, human monstrosities, portraits of kings, queens, saints and martyrs, and allegorical pictures of miracles, as well as views of a great number of "modern" cities, many of which had never been documented before.Today, copies of the Chronicle sell for up to 200,000 Euros; we’ve procured a rare hand-colored copy, true to the original in every respect, and created a complete facsimile of utmost quality. For readers who don’t read Old German, this edition includes summaries of the main stories, making it easy to navigate and fully appreciate this remarkable historical work.

In the beginning was the word, and in the Middle Ages were kings, princes, and high-ranking religious members whose wealth and influence produced illustrated bibles of extraordinary craftsmanship. This edition brings together 50 of the finest medieval bible manuscripts from the Austrian National Library. With examples from every epoch of the Middle Ages, the collection explores visualizations of the bible in various theological and historical contexts. In impeccable reproduction quality, these stunning images may be appreciated as much as art historical treasures as they are important religious artifacts. Texts by Andreas Fingernagel, Stephan Füssel, Christian Gastgeber, and a team of 15 scientific authors describe each manuscript in detail, exploring both the evolution of the Bible and the medieval understanding of history. A glossary of important terms is also included so that those not versed in bible history can enjoy the texts as well.