The Gutenberg bible is widely lauded as the first book printed with moveable metal type. Yet, the Jijki, a book of Zen Buddhist teachings, was printed in 1377 in Cheongju, Korea – seventy-eight years before Gutenberg. Through comparisons of early printed books from Korea and Western Europe – as well as the materials used to make them – this exhibition will show audiences how two different cultures utilized local materials and traditional craftsmanship to create a new and innovative technology.
Curators
Jill Gage, Custodian of the John M. Wing Foundation on the History of Printing and Bibliographer for British Literature and History
Kimberly Nichols, Director of Conservation
More About the Space
The Hanson Gallery is a small, intimate space. Exhibitions mounted there typically include 12-24 items, allowing visitors a glimpse of what the Newberry’s vast collections have to offer. Hanson exhibitions are often modest thematic presentations that draw from a range of the library's collections or interpretive explorations that are built around single items. Examples of past exhibitions include: Royko and Free and Independent. Click here to view a photo of the gallery.
