Woodblock printing

The block printing, also known as wood block printing, was the common printing method until Johannes Gutenberg further developed the printing press. It was invented in China during the Sui Dynasty. After it reached Europe in the 14th century. Image and text printed together with a wooden plate - When block printing were - in contrast to the woodcut.

In block printing were excised reversed wooden panels and text representations of a whole page later paper, inked and pressed on this damp paper "printed". Today us, this process is still known about the woodcut or linocut print the. Is running as a block print -bound sequence of related prints of wooden panels is called block book. Such block books that emerged in Europe only in the 15th century, were known at least since the 8th century. With cut wooden clichés ( 615-906 AD) was printed in China as early as the Tang Dynasty, with the accompanying drawing, and were cut into the same printing form. This printing technique spread first in Southeast Asia.

In 1966, in the Korean Gyeongju, formerly capital of the Kingdom of Silla, the hitherto oldest surviving block print found in Buddhist temple Bulguksa - one printed on a 8 cm wide and 630 cm long roll paper mulberry canon of the Spotless Great Dharani Sutra, which contains Buddhist tenets. The work is dated 704-751. Previously, the Japanese were Hyakumantō Darani ( " 1,000,000 pagodas and Dharani [ prayers ]") as the oldest wood panel prints. Empress Shōtoku therefore ordered 764 the pressure of one million prayer notes, which were packed in as many wooden pagoda models, where the project was already completed 770; Today there are thousands of copies.

In Europe, allows the use of the wooden temple from the 12th century to demonstrate: were printed in this manner substances in Italy. It is thought that passed through playing cards painters in the 14th century, this technique also to Central Europe. 1430 then originated in Europe first block books in which each page is printed with a continuous wood panel which could include both writing and pictures.