"Gutenberg remains a problematic figure for historians in that he is often credited not just with originating the process of printing with moveable types for Europe, but, by extension, with a complex series of later developments that his work made possible, albeit which he never envisioned. Moreover, a widening divide exists between the historical Gutenberg, a man who left behind only a few dimly understood documents related to his actual activities, and the symbolic Gutenberg, the cultural hero immortalized in bronze in Mainz,"
"who enjoys international familiarity as the pioneering 'prophet' of the vast media revolutions that continue into our days. Because the personality and thoughts of the man who died in 1468 may be lost to history, and centuries of local lore, competing claims and scholarly guesswork have confused, obscured or even inflated the essential facts underlying his work, the only way to get to know him may be through a closer look at the books and ephemera that he printed."
Johannes Gutenberg is often credited with originating the process of printing with movable type in Europe and with initiating a series of later developments that he never envisioned. A widening divide exists between the historical Gutenberg, who left only a few dimly understood documents related to his activities, and the symbolic Gutenberg, the cultural hero immortalized in bronze in Mainz. Centuries of local lore, competing claims and scholarly guesswork have confused, obscured, or inflated the essential facts of his work. The printed books and ephemera he produced remain the most direct reflections of his fifteenth-century concerns, ambitions, abilities, and setbacks. Medievalists and historians of printing and technology will gain deeper insight into his life and legacy.
Read at Medievalists.net
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