Although no piece of printing in existence bears the name of Johannes Gutenberg, documentary evidence, as well as a large body of testimony from contemporary writers, identifies him as the inventor of printing by movable type in the Western world.

Gutenberg was born in Mainz, Germany, to a well-to-do father who was probably involved in the cloth trade (as well as dealing with precious metals) and a mother who was the daughter of a shopkeeper. The different social backgrounds of his parents made it impossible for Gutenberg to be part of the patrician class, so, out of necessity, he became a self-reliant entrepreneur. Probably through the affiliation of his father's family with the society of the mint, Gutenberg learned metallurgy and casting techniques. He left Mainz around 1429 due to civic conflicts and during the next five years honed his metalworking skills—skills...