After Class, Chapter 5 & Part of 6

The class discussion today consisted of the invention of the printing press and how it was very important and essential. We talked about the difference between xylography (which is a relief printing from a raised surface) and typography (which is printing with a movable, independent and reusable bits of wood or metal in which both are raised letterforms). Textura, as we have discussed in earlier classes, was very popular in Germany at the time. Books during this time were worth more than land which is shocking considering there are millions of books published today. Production of these books helped lots of people become more literate.

We also discussed how important illustrated books became during this time. German graphic design artists continued using textura and typography along with new woodcut illustrations. Albrecht Durer was a very important figure in making these illustrations. Durer's illustrations consisted of depth, volume, shadows and textures. These illustrations helped people get a better understanding of the text they read in books.

Within our discussion, I learned the two terms broadside and broadsheet. Broadside is a single leaf paper that is printed on one side only. A broadsheet is a single leaf of paper that is printed on both sides.

One question that I have from our discussion is approximately how much was a book worth? The reading says they were worth more than land, but how much was that?