"The Gutenberg Press | 1450 AD"

What is Johannes Gutenberg credited with?
inventing the technology of printing with movable type

Post a photo of the Gutenberg Press.

How did the printing press work? 
form was pressed against a sheet of paper

What motivated Gutenberg to find a better way of creating books?
the time he spent with his father and his love of reading

Why did Gutenberg experiment with metal type versus wood type?
they were easier to replacePost an example of movable type in a type case.

What is moveable type?
the system of printing that uses movable components to reproduce the elements of a document

What is a matrix?
hard metal that is hammered into a bar

What ink did Gutenberg develop that he used specifically for the printing press?
oil based

What is paper made from? Where did paper originate?
a substrate made from wood pulp; China

What is a "substrate"?

The substance on which an enzyme acts

Who did Gutenberg seek to help with the invention of the press? Close to the end of the 5 years, what happened? 
Peter Schoffer; He got sued by Fust and lost everything

What was the first book he printed?The Bible

Post an example of this book.

How did the Gutenberg Press impact communication?
perfected script and made it easier to read, books made more rapidly, info could be shared everywhere, cost of books decreased, more people wanted them, world became more literate, greater variety and different language

Who introduced the printing press to England?
William Coxton

What was the early form of newspapers?
trade newsletters

When was the first news weekly published? What was it called?
1704, The Boston Letter

What kind of press was built in the US in the mid 1800s?
one made completely from cast ironPost an example of a 1930s printing press.

By the late 1930s, presses had increased in efficiency and were capable of 2,500 to 3,500 impressions per hour. What is meant by "impression"?
letters on pages

Which printing process is the Gutenberg press an example of? Briefly describe the process?
Relief Printing; movable type placed into press, ink spread onto type, paper placed on top, press applies direct pressurePost an example of an intaglio press.

What is intaglio printing and how is ink transferred?printmaking, image is etched and filled with in and then applied to the page with pressure

Post an example of a screen (porous) printing press.

What is porous printing and how is ink transferred?
Stenciling

Post an example of a lithography printing press.

What is lithography and how is ink transferred?
Planographic; printing from a flat surface

Post an example of an offset lithography printing press.

What variation of lithography is used by the commercial printing industry today?
Offset

How do printing presses used today compare to the Gutenberg Press?
They are more hightech

Describe four-color process printing using CMYK?

Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black

"The Roman Alphabet | 7th century BC"

What was the basis of the Roman uppercase alphabet?
Greek Alphabet
What were the purposes of the formal and informal styles of lettering?
Formal-Important manuscripts, official documents
Informal-letters, quick writing

Why is the Roman alphabet the most widely used and what contributions did it make?
Easy to use; serifs, baseline, type aligned in rows,

From where did serifs originate?
Stone masons added it to keep their chisel from slipping, in Italy

When and where did lowercase, or minuscule, letters develop?
Rome, with the baseline

What is a ligature and why were they utilized?a printed or written character consisting of two or more letters or characters joined together
Post an example of the Roman alphabet in visual form. 

"The Greek Alphabet | 800 BC"

How did Greeks come in contact with the Phoenicians?
The Phoenicians traveled there and established trade agreements

How was the Greek adaptation of the alphabet different from its predecessor?
They adapted several consonants were adapted as vowels

Why is the Greek alphabet considered to be the world's first true alphabet?
Because it was the base for a lot of other alphabets and it had vowels and consonants

Name several similarities and differences between the Greek and modern English alphabets?They have a lot of similar sound and shaped letters, they have letters missing and the letter name doesn't always represent the sound
Post an example of the Greek alphabet in visual form. 

"The Phoenician Alphabet | 1050 BC"

The Phoenician alphabet is based on what principle?
That one sign represent one spoken sound

Describe the shape of the letters and what tool created them?
Angular and straight; a stylus

What two reasons made the Phoenician alphabet so successful?
It was written left to right and that made is easier to read, the trading culture spread it

What long term effects on the social structures of civilizations did the Phoenicians have with the creation of their alphabet?
it was the first wide spread script, simple enough to be used in multiple languages, allowed common people to learn how to write
Post an example of the Phoenician alphabet in visual form.

"Hieroglyphics and the Egyptians | 3,000 BC"

In the sixth century BC, what three civilizations invaded Egypt? Persians, Greeks, and Romans





Post an example of the inside wall(s) of an Ancient Egyptian temple.

What was discovered on the inside of the temples?
Carved and painted images on every wall and surface

Scholars believe that Ancient Egyptians were inspired and influenced by which written language?
Cuneiform

What is the difference between logographic and alphabetic elements?
The term Hieroglyphic derived from what two Greek words?
Logographic-Visual symbols representing ideas or objects
Alphabetic-Represents more sounds and letters; hiero & glyphic


What is a scribe? 
Anyone that could read and write, that documented the past

Who else was trained to read and write? Why?Military leaders, so they could communicated during battle
Priests in temples, so they could write out instrustiond for rituals 


Post an example of hieroglyphics on papyrus.

What is papyrus and how was it made?
A substrate made from reeds native to Egypt; wet reeds are placed Criss-cross over each other, flattened and dried, than rubbed with flat stones until the surface is smooth

What is a substrate?The substance on which an enzyme acts

What were the Books of the Dead?they were scrolls for pharaohs that had instructions for the afterlife

How did Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics become a forgotten language?
People stopped passing on how to read or write themPost an example of the Rosetta Stone

What is the Rosetta Stone? Where was it discovered?
A slab with the same inscription written in 3 languages; Rosetta, Egypt

What three languages are included on the stone?Egyptian Hieroglyphics, Demotic, Greek

Why couldn't the text on the Stone be deciphered?
A chunk of the stone was gone and none of the texts were complete

Who finally deciphered the text? What was his breakthrough?
Jean Francois Champollion; He was able to match some hieroglyphics to the Greek version of the name Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses

Why does the interpretation of the Rosetta Stone have such significance?
We know a lot more about the ancient Egyptians and their hieroglyphics

Inspiration Assignment 15

I like how in this one the incorporate colors form the small image into the design around the text.

I want to try and make my text look faded like in this picture

I like the whimsical swirls around the text.

I like how the entire page is filled in this image.

I want to incorporate the intricate details like in this page.

I like how the P is placed and also that other letters have a detail to them.

"The Codex and the Illuminated Manuscript | 1st century AD"

Post an example of a scroll.

What were the drawbacks of the scroll?The reader had to read the text in the order it was written


Post an example of a codex.

What is a codex?
A covered and bound collection of hand written pages


"Codex" is derived from the Latin meaning "block of wood". Why?
Because it is not in a circular shape but instead a block shape
What is the difference between "sequential access" and "random access"?
Random access — one can go to any point to find information
Sequential access — one must go through the scroll to find a certain passage


What were the advantages of using the codex?
can be opened to any page, more portable, was easier to organize because of the spine
What helped spread the use of the codex?the bible
What replaced papyrus? Describe the process used to create it?parchment made of animal skin;
hair and fat removed; skin was smoothed; soaked in water; calcium,flour,and salt were added; skin was stretched out; flattened and dried
What is vellum?finer parchment made from young calves skins


Name several examples of current technology that utilizes the format of the codex?kindle, ipad, nook

What led to a period of cultural and economical deterioration?The decline of the Roman Empire and its fall to the Huns in 450


Post an example of an illuminated manuscript.

Who began creating books by hand, taking the creation to an art form?Monastic Monks


What does "illumination" refer to? What was included in this ornamentation?The borders, illustrations and ornamentation added; initials of chapters or paragraphs and paintings in margins, borders and around text
What tool was used for creating the illuminated manuscripts?natural guill pens
Why were these manuscripts reserved for religious purposes?because it took so long to make them
What is craftsmanship? Why is it important?

The quality of design and work shown in something made by hand; it allows others to appreciate the time and skill required to make something.