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 FIFTEENTH CENTURV.

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knowledge of the art of printing ; not succeeding be quitted Strasburg, and Tetnmed to Hentz, when he opened his mind more fully to Faust, and pierailed upon him to advance large sums, in Older to make more complete trials of the art. Having already investigated the subject, and given uie opinions of the most impartial writers, which entitles Gutenberg to the honour of being the inventor of the art of printing, little need be added to convince the unbiassed reader. It is proved that Gutenberg did not use any other dian evt metal types until 1402. In 1465 he was hononred by the archbishop Adolphus with a mark of distinstion, to which his genius and labour entitled him. He vaa admitted among the nobiliw of his court, allowed to wear the dress peculiar to that order, and bad a pension, togethft with several privilege and exemptions, conferred upon him, and it is supposed that be then relinquished an art which had caused him ■o much vexation. Many writers adduce the honours conferred by the archbishop, and which were sanctioned by Erasmus, as strong proofs in CftTDur of Gutenberg ; for Erasmus being a Dutch- man, would not have conceded to this, bad any rival press existed at Haerlem. Geinsfleish, sen. died Drfore these honours were conferred upon his brother ; probably the archbishop was gpener- aHj informed that the younger brother was the mJe inventor ; and it is to be regretted, that from some nnfofeseen cause the elder brother has been oreilooked ; for which it is quite impossible now to acooont. This could not possibly have been the case, had the art been known beyond the city of Hentz ; therefore, as no rival press appears to have existed, the only conclusion that can be arrived at is granting to the Gutenbergs, with the assistance of Faust, and the ingenuity of Schoeffer, the merit of the discovery. Gutenberg jiinior, was interred in the church of Recollete, at Mentz ; and the following epitaph was placed over, or near his tomb :

" D. O. M. S. Jthtma GebtVMiM, (from the name of Us hooie) arlii imprimtrim repertui, i* ««m< naltone H luifiK optima merito im nominis »ui memorium im* moruUem, Adam QeUku$t potuit.***

At the death of Gutenberg, Conrad Humery took possession of all his printing materials, and engaged to the archbishop Adolphus, that he never would sell them to any one but a citizen of Mentz. They were, however, soon disposed of to Nicholas Bechtermunze, of Altavilla, who in 1469, published the Vocalndarium Latino Teuto- wieum, which was printed with the same types which had. been used in the Catholicon. This very curious and scarce vocabulary is in the duke of Marlborough's valuable library at Blenheim. It b in 4to. thirty-five lines long, contains many extracts from the Catholicon, and is called " Ex fuo" from the preface beginning with these words.

• Jobmon, la hi* Tpptgrmkia, vcd. I. qnerT'* this, and asTS, liave not those uniten twen in error, who anicn this tusul|>Uon to the memopr of John Gutenberg, Inn. > I eonteod that it betong* to tlw senior, who was disttngnish- ed by the name it beus ; whereas the yoiiDKer was not known by tiiat appellation : the senior had an equal, if not m •aperior daim to the Invention.

1468. In this year £1 16>. Hd. was lent on the security of a manuscript of Peter Comester depo- sited as a pledge. Wheat at this time was six shillings and eigbtpence the quarter; beef, ten shillings the carcase ; mutton, one shilling and fourpence ; veal, two shillings and sixpence ; pork, two shiUings; ale, three halfpence a gallon. 1466. Until this year, the proficients in this new art had proceeded no farther than in the common alphabet, suited to the vulgar and Latin tongues. The Gothic alphabet, as it most resem- bled the manuscripts of those times, was the first attempt; then some of the Italian princes intro- duced the Roman alphabet ; and in a short time, brought it to that perfection, that, in the begin- ning of the year 1474, they cast a letter not much inferior to the best types of the present age ; as may be seen in a Latin grammar, written by OmnibontiR Leonicenus, and printed at Padua, on the 4th of January, 1474. It is from this work, that our grammarian Lilly has taken the entire scheme of his grammar, and transcribed the greatest part of it, without paying any regard to the memory of this author.

1468, Dec. 17. Oxtord Book. This book is a small quarto, consisting of forty-one leaves, a copy of which is in the public library at Cam- bnd.ge, bearing the following title : — Exporicio Sancti Jeronimi in Simbolwn Apottolorum ad Papam Lautenthim : and at the end, Explieit exporicio, jrc. Impreua Oxonie, etfinita Anno Domini m.cccc.lxviii. — xvil die Deeembrit. — For further particulars concerning this book, see Life ofCaxton, 1474.

146i9. The art of printing introduced at Venice, by John and Windiline de Spira. These prin- ters were natives of Germany, where they learnt the art ; they settled at Venice, and printed their first book CicenftEpittlet,m this year. They sur- passed all their predecessors in the beauty of their impressions; they emplcyed two very learned men as correctors of their press. Ine Spiras were the first who applied the art on a regular and extensive scale to the publication of the classics.

These two brothers soon surpassed all other printers, in the beauty and svmmetry of their types, and the elegance of their impressions, which render their editions admired and esteemed by the curious, in preference to those of all other ancient typographers. Venice, by this, gained so much reputation for the fineness of her types, that some eminent printers at Rome, and in otner places, either furnished themselves with founts of the same letter, or endeavoured to imitate their beauty ; acquainting their readers in their next impressions, that they were printed with Venetian types. The high character Venice bad acquired lor beautiful printing, induced many inferior printers to avail themselves of this favourable circumstance, to recommend to the world the most wretched productions. But this demon- strates the superior merit of that city, and the laudable emulation of her printers, not only to excel those places, but even one another. And, indeed, the Spiras, with John de Cologne, and

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