This is one of fifty copies left of the Gutenberg Bible, printed over 650 years ago. The volume symbolises a revolution in information transfer, because its movable type enabled the quick printing of books. Despite the forward-looking aspects of the Gutenberg Bible, it also symbolizes the Medieval culture from which it came. For instance, about two-thirds of the original copies were on paper, but the rest were printed on (much more costly) vellum. The blue and red marginalia were added by hand after the Bible was printed, showing how people of the 15th century thought of books as precious objects in their own right, not just because of the information they contained. The fact that Europe’s most significant first printed book was the bedrock of Christian scripture also reflects Medieval culture.
