Biblia Latina [Gutenberg Bible]

The Gutenberg Bible—the first major work printed in Europe—takes its name from Johann Gutenberg, a native of Mainz, Germany, who is credited as the first Westerner to develop a method of casting movable or reusable type. By 1455, the techniques he had developed culminated in a 1,286-page folio Bible. Gutenberg's Bible continues to inspire admiration, both as the model for all that came after it, and as a grand work of art in its own right. Gutenberg and his workmen printed 160 to 180 Bibles (about one-quarter of them on vellum, the rest on paper); fewer than fifty bound copies survive. One of only three perfect copies on vellum has been imaged for this Octavo Edition, which displays the Bible in remarkable detail, and includes bibliographical data and a complete English translation. Commentary by Janet Ing Freeman. (2-CD set.)