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| A modern reproduction of the movable type invented by Pi Sheng between 1041 and 1048, and a page printed from it. Movable type was not invented by Johann Gutenberg, as is universally believed in the West. The reproduction was made from the detailed description by Shen Kua which survives from 1086. |
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A traditional Chinese engraved wood block, the print made from it, and graving tools. (Victoria and Albert Museum, London.) |
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| The frontispiece of the world's oldest surviving book printed on paper, the Diamond Sutra, discovered at Tunhuang by Sir Aurel Stein in 1907. The book is in the form of a roll with a total length of 171/2 feet, and it was printed in the year 868. The frontispiece depicts the Buddha discoursing with his disciple Subhuti, and surrounded by divine beings, monks and officials in Chinese dress. This is the earliest woodcut illustration in a printed book. (British Library, London.) |
