Could a Greek Gutenberg have invented a practical movable type printing system in antiquity? Were there any technical (like suitable ink) or economic (like cheap writing material) prerequisites that needed to be in place?
This question is prompted by a recent news article about a lost text of Archimedes that was found beneath the text of a 13th century parchment prayerbook.
Movable type printing was first used in China some 400 years before Gutenberg. See Wikipedia.
I would think that the invention of paper (as opposed to papyrus or palimpsests, etc) would be a significant factor; that took place around two millennia ago, again in China. It would have been just too late for the Greeks of antiquity, even supposing that they knew of the developments in China.
Build a man a fire and he's warm for a day. Set a man on fire and he's warm for the rest of his life.
Does anyone know how expensive papyrus was in antiquity? Was it so expensive that the time and cost of a scribe were insignificant compared to the cost of papyrus? I've tried making papyrus (the reeds grow near our house) and it isn't trivial.
It's not all that expensive these days. I bought some papyrus souvenirs when I was in Egypt and they were not expensive - although the "fake-papyrus" items (made from banana leaves I was told) were significantly cheaper.
Richard English
Posts: 8038 | Location: Partridge Green, West Sussex, UK
