European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 18, 1965, Darmstadt, Hesse Gutenberg s legacy testament to the printed of Ord first portrayal 1584 of Gutenberg. By Frank x. Wamsley staff writer easter sunday la an appropriate Day to reflect for a moment on the Bible and the important place ii occupies in our world today. Families make permanent records in bibles the Gideons leave them in hotel rooms hither and Yont witnesses swear on them presidents take their oath of office with them and Church services All Over the Christian world Are based on biblical teachings. Family bibles Are passed along for generations becoming True heirlooms. Pages become worn and tattered Over the years but the printed word has a Way of surviving. It is this fact that is per hips the greatest tribute to Johannes Gutenberg the Man who made it possible eventually for everyone to have his own copy of the Bible to say nothing of other by the year 137, when Gulen Bers was born in the City of Mainz Germany printing itself was already ancient his tory and existed in Many forms. Books however were scarce and highly valued. Monks laboriously copied scripture by hand into ponderous volumes that were kept under lock and key la prevent theft. To Complete a Bible in this Fash Ion took years of patient Effort. In the monasteries of Mainz Gulen Berg often had the Chance la study the monks at work and it Musl Hare been while watching them that his ideas be Gan to sort of Man was this that stood to lost in reflection among the monks we have no certain description of Guten Berg the earliest known portrayal of him is an etching made 100 years after Bis Gutenberg hit upon the idea to make movable Type he acted swiftly making a substantial loan to finance the expense of casting Type construct ing a press acquiring a Stock of paper hiring Worken and buying Ink and All the necessary incidentals. He designed and cast 190 matrices for the print Long. Including All letters of the alphabet plus numerous abbreviations necessary to set Short lines in column form. From these the Type was cast using mixture of Lead tin Antimony and Bismuth in much the same proportions As Are used by printers today. Consid Erable experimentation was necessary to find just the right proportions but. Just As will inc difficulties experienced with developing a Rood press Duett Burn found the All his preparations were completed Gutenberg begun printing. I three years he completed Sou bibles 30 of them on the Best Grade of parch ment. It was inc Marvel of the am. In less than the time n Monk Cui ild finish one Tome the master primer Hud completed 200complete texts they were but the. Gutenberg bibles were sold unbound and with space left for the initials that were then painted in by sunday april 18, 1965 the buyer or someone commissioned for that purpose. Only 47 of those original 200 Killies Are known still to exist. One of these is in inc Gutenberg museum in main/., Germany where it is safeguarded in u locked steel and Glass Case. But the precautions Don t Slop there. The Case containing the Gutenberg Bible is itself inside � ponderous vault which would do credit to Brink s und it s Only opened fur u Short period each Day. While the vault is open he Ivy steel barred gales Are swung into place and locked ome the visitors Are inside. The sacred Biniok 1.1 put under Light Only for these viewing Al other times the delicate pages Hrman with age Aru co kit t Lar isl rising from Chr grave above Pernsl Rule soldiers illustrates text of he gospel us cording in St. Matthew. The colourful Bible which predates Gutenberg s by 12 years was printed by hand und lavishly illustrated lit the workshop of a Labolt Limber of huge Nau in Alsace in i a. Sas photos Mere made Liy Boh Milne. Protected from Strong Hughl Giitl Only on rare occasions Are exposed to the Light of Day. What is this Bible Worth or. Helmut Presser. Director of the Gutenberg museum says it might be Worth millions of in open unc Tion. The City of Mainz purchased Elliis Gutenberg Lible in ims for 73.000 Teich Murks about 118.750 hut what it would be Worth today u almost impossible to Presser said. And to a thief How much would it l e Worth probably not Presser smiled in amusement. Where would a to Lief ill such u thing without detection who would buy ii knowing it could never in shown the museum is housed in u modern Structure that s Bright and Roomy in Side. Exhibits cover the Complete his tory of printing and include rare and ancient specimens of the Art. Gutenberg produced his bibles be tween 1451 and 1453 and the beautifully printed books each Hud 1 .28 pages begun bringing in Cash to the financially pressed Printer. But it was Loo Laic. Unable to repay his loan. Gutenberg was faced with u court action which in lost to the Goldsmith lol Uinn Fust who had made inc loan. Gutenberg forfeited All that he possessed including his " lie died in 1468 in main poor and for gotten. Kvin the place where his Bones rest is not Good he did w is not interred Iilah him. However it lives of Wlllie each printed word a proud testament to the Man who could not be forgotten by history. Gutenberg museum in Moini contain a replica of the Mailer printer1 pres to Iii original Gutenberg Bible below May be teen for Only one hour a Days the stars and stripes Page 11
