The printing industry has evolved greatly since its invention. From the simple wooden blocks that were used, to the fast and modern machines that we have today, printing has definitely grown and is now one of the leading industries in the world today. It is almost impossible to think of our lives without printing. We see it everywhere - all the time.
The Beginning of Printing
China is the country where the first printed book was discovered. The oldest printed book is called Diamond Sutra and it was printed in 868. It was also the Chinese who first used a brush for writing. At that time, it was more of art and expression rather than of necessity. Most of the first editions of printing were concentrated on designs and pictures.
From writing on silk, wood and other materials came the invention of seals or stamps in Babylonia. During this time, they were solely used to indicate authenticity. The knowledge about printing has traveled from country to country with the help of explorers and scholars and has continuously grown over the years.
The Gutenberg Era
Johannes Gutenberg from Germany was the known developer of the European movable type printing technology. It was around the year 1493 that he began his work and after only a few years, Gutenberg has marked the European Age of Printing.
The Gutenberg Press became popular and allowed the printing of text to be much easier and affordable. The invention of printing press changed the world since then.
Printing Today
Below are the top three sectors that benefit the most with the invention of printing:
Education
- millions and millions of textbooks are printed to be used at schools.
Aside from textbooks, other reading materials intended to aid in
learning of students are also printed nonstop.
Marketing
- promotional materials such as brochures, pamphlets and many others
are the traditional style of marketing. Even in these modern times where
the use of internet is common, printed materials are still very
effective when it comes to advertising or promoting.
Corporation/Business - companies today make use of printed materials on a daily basis - for contracts, proposals and many other necessary paperwork - in order to efficiently keep track of their business.
