The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1882-11-15
"rHE ART PREsERvAT1vE.D
Some Interesting Facts Connected with the
history ofPrintinE.


the worlds history people did not have
ideas upon this subject, which were the
germs of what was to come in after
ages. The impression of the hand or
foot, or of some other object, made in
soft mud or clay and then hardened by
time, or baked by the heat of the sun,
must have suggested a simple and in
telligent mode of conveying an idea,
before the invention of any kind of
writing. Accordingly these and other
signs are found TO compose the chief
characters of the earliest writings of
which we have any knowledge, and
which are called symbolic.
We find certain evidence that more
than two thousand years before our era
a method of multiplying impressions,
or, in other words, printing existed; and
if we come down to the time Of the
great city of Babylon, which owed its
chief greatness to Nebuchadnezzar,
who died five hundred and sixty-one
years before Christ, we see that on the
brick with which every important
structure was composed the name of
that wicked king is stamped; and the
stamping must have been done with
die or type, on which was raised char
acters capable of producing an I'M
preston. The ruins of Babylon at
this day consist mainly of three
mounds IL. Babil, probably the
temple of Belos. 2. The Kasr, or
palace of Nebuchadnezzar. This is an
irregular square, about 700 yards each
way, surmounted with the remains of a
square structure, the walls of which
are composed of burnt brick of pale
yellow color, of excellent quality, bound
together with lime cement and stamped
with the name of Nebuchadnezzar. 3.
A mound now called Amran, of irregu-
lar triangular shape, and supposed to
be the ruins of a palace older than
Nebuchadnezzar's for bricks have been
found there inscribed with the names
of more ancient kings than he. That
it should have been thought worth
while to print inscriptions upon mate
rial destined to be built into their
dwellings, argues that the process was
not only not an uncommon one, but
also that there probably existed at the
same time more advanced and more
elegant mode Of imprinting in their do
mestic and ornamental arts. In fact,
We idNC CAlcllllA VI
of different form and sizes, from a foot
high to the size of a signet-to which
purpose the latter were probably APP
piled, as their shape indicated they had
been worn as finger rings, or hung
about the neck like charm or amulet
and all stamped with some characters.
After this long time elapsed before
the practice of transferring characters
from die to any substance, or, in
other words, printing was known to
any, even comparatively civilized
people.
There is reason to believe that print
ing from characters engraved upon
wooden blocks was known to the Chi
nese in the sixth century, though we
scarcely hear anything of its applica-
tion for four centuries after until the
advantages Of the art became so mani
fest that we are told that in 932 Fung
Taou and lie Yu, two ministers Of the
Latter Han, memorialized the throne
to have the Nine Classics (Which
had hitherto existed only in the manu-
script-revised and printed, and in
about twenty years copies were in cir
culatiOn. But it was not until the close
of the thirteenth century that most of
the literature of former ages, which had
also existed only as writing upon man
uscript, had been printed.
The original method of printing was
from blocks of wood. The subject to
be printed was written upon paper.
which was then laid face downward
upon a smooth block of hard wood, to
the surface Of which the ink was trans
fered. All of the wood, except the
linked lines, was then rapidly cut away
with a sharp instrument, leaving the
letters or characters in relief. Each
plate thus made formed a page, and
the printing was done by first hiking
the characters and then pressing q sheet
of paper upon them, either with the
hand or a soft brush, thus giving the
impression. Block printing, after the
Chinese method, was practiced in Italy,
Spain and Sicily for designs on fabrics
OF silk and cotton, which were printed
in ink, as early as the last years Of the
twelfth century.
The next obvious advance was the
engraving of pictures upon wooden
blocks, and it is generally agreed that
the art was invented toward the end
OF the thirteenth century by member
of the family Of Cuniolords of Imola in
Italy.
Movable type, such as are now used
in printing, were European invention;
and practically the art of printing
waited for the development of the
manufacture Of paper, which was not
a staple of commerce before the close
of the fourteenth century. And again
we find the Chinese in the advance
here, for they were the first to form
from vegetable fiber the web which
constitutes modern paper. They used
the bank of several trees, especially
the mulberry, the bamboo, reduced to
pulp by beating, the straw of rice and
other grain, silk, cotton and rags of
different kinds.
1t is still question undecided as to
the person who invented, the place and
the time of the invention of movable