One of the most appreciated innovations of the Tang and Song
dynasties were the inventions of the woodblock printing and the moveable
type. The first known notion of
woodblock printing was in China around the year AD 600, and it was probably
inspired by the older practice of seals to make impressions on clay and melted
wax. This process of block printing on paper was perfected within the lifespan
of the Tang Dynasty.
With the printing process also came a sophisticated paper
industry with a more wide array of paper materials with different qualities for
specific projects. The original wood
blocks were made from pear and date trees. The process for creating a wood
block was quite straightforward. The text (or glyph) was first written on a
piece of paper. This was then glued to a block of wood, and by the use of a
knife the characters on the paper were carefully etched on the wood. The
surface of the wood block was then inked and covered with a sheet of paper.
After application of gentle pressure to the paper the character would be
printed onto the paper.
The first use of woodblock printing was for the printing of
calendars, calligraphy and charms, as well as for books on agriculture and
medicine. The oldest existing printing in wood blocks that survived is the Mugujeonggwang great Dharani sutra that
dates back to between AD 704 and 751. In the year 762, the first printed books
were sold in the markets of Chang’an, the capital of Tang. Printed receipts
were available in the markets for business transactions and tax payments.
Although woodblock printing was an important factor
in the spread of information around China, it was very time consuming. These
limitations led to the invention of moveable-type printing. This was invented
between 1041 and 1048 AD (the Song Dynasty) by an experienced wood block
printer by the name of Bi Sheng. He decided to make a clay type for each
character, then he had them fired to get hard. A layer of resin, wax, and paper ash mixture was
placed on the bottom of an open iron box to hold the type with characters
facing up. The bottom of the box was heated to melt the wax mixture, and
simultaneously all the typeface was pressed down with a wood board to
ensure that the types were level. Finally the tops of the clay types were
inked, and the mechanism would then be ready for printing just like a wood
block. Afterward the clay types could be disassembled and reused.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/ukiy/hd_ukiy.htm
Thank you for the information and additional knowledge about wood block printing..
ReplyDeletewith due respect, allow me to use this picture and information for additional information in a module for students... Thank you and god bless!
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