Containing 26 selected and thoroughly rewritten essays and articles (all written by Janssen and published previously between 1976 and 2002 in yearbooks and periodicals) all dedicated to the history of printing and book production, this work draws systematically attention to the typogtaphical design of the book. The articles are mainly divided into two fields of attention: the analytical bibliography of the printed book (book production, studies of the technical aspects of type-setting and printing, type founding, printing presses, paper etc.) and the typographical design of books (its functions and its influence on how texts are read).

A COMPANION TO THE HISTORY OF THE BOOK A COMPANION TO THE HISTORY OF THE BOOK Edited by Simon Eliot and Jonathan Rose “As a stimulating overview of the multidimensional present state of the field, the Companion has no peer.” Choice “If you want to understand how cultures come into being, endure, and change, then you need to come to terms with the rich and often surprising history Of the book ... Eliot and Rose have done a fine job. Their volume can be heartily recommended. “ Adrian Johns, Technology and Culture From the early Sumerian clay tablet through to the emergence of the electronic text, this Companion provides a continuous and coherent account of the history of the book. A team of expert contributors draws on the latest research in order to offer a cogent, transcontinental narrative. Many of them use illustrative examples and case studies of well-known texts, conveying the excitement surrounding this rapidly developing field. The Companion is organized around four distinct approaches to the history of the book. First, it introduces the variety of methods used by book historians and allied specialists, from the long-established discipline of bibliography to newer IT-based approaches. Next, it provides a broad chronological survey of the forms and content of texts. The third section situates the book in the context of text culture as a whole, while the final section addresses broader issues, such as literacy, copyright, and the future of the book. Contributors to this volume: Michael Albin, Martin Andrews, Rob Banham, Megan L Benton, Michelle P. Brown, Marie-Frangoise Cachin, Hortensia Calvo, Charles Chadwyck-Healey, M. T. Clanchy, Stephen Colclough, Patricia Crain, J. S. Edgren, Simon Eliot, John Feather, David Finkelstein, David Greetham, Robert A. Gross, Deana Heath, Lotte Hellinga, T. H. Howard-Hill, Peter Kornicki, Beth Luey, Paul Luna, Russell L. Martin Ill, Jean-Yves Mollier, Angus Phillips, Eleanor Robson, Cornelia Roemer, Jonathan Rose, Emile G. L Schrijver, David J. Shaw, Graham Shaw, Claire Squires, Rietje van Vliet, James Wald, Rowan Watson, Alexis Weedon, Adriaan van der Weel, Wayne A. Wiegand, Eva Hemmungs Wirtén.

One of the most puzzling lapses in historical accounts of the rise of the West following the decline of the Roman Empire is the casual way historians have dealt with Gutenberg's invention of printing. The cultural achievement that followed the fifteenth century, in which the West moved from relative backwardness to remarkable, robust cultural achievement is unimaginable absent Gutenberg's gift and its subsequent widespread adoption across most of the world. In this book, Richard Abel describes the historical background of the radical cultural impact of the printing revolution. He begins from the eighth century to the Renaissance noting the viability of the new Christian/Classical culture. While it proved too fragile to endure, those who salvaged it preserved elements of the Classical substance together with the Bible and all the writings of the Church Fathers. The cultural upsurge of the Renaissance of the fourteenth to seventeenth centuries which resulted in part from Gutenberg's invention, is a major focus of the work. Abel aims to delineate how the Cultural Revolution was shaped by the invention of printing and its impact on the rapid reorientation and acceleration of the evolution of the culture in the West. This book provides insight into the history of the printed word, the roots of modern-day mass book production, and the promise of the electronic revolution. It is an essential work in the history of ideas.