Gutenberg Bible, 1455
Book I of the Maccabees

Before Johann Gutenberg's invention of the printing press in 1440, texts were extremely costly and time-consuming to produce. Handwritten materials were rare and accessible only to elite members of society. Gutenberg's invention changed the amount of information, the rate at which it was produced and the type of information available. The printing press gave common people and patrician families alike greater opportunity to own written texts due to the cost and accessibility of printed materials. This broadening of access to information encouraged commerce, and spread culture and ideas. Early printed books also gave more members of society a key to understanding of their ever broadening world.The printing press and early books launched the beginning of a documented society, advancing education and cultural progress.