The timeline

Five thousand years, one long conversation between hands and ideas.

Choose an era, then follow the line. Each mark shows how certain we are of its date.

Solid mark: date documented. Dashed mark: date approximate or attribution disputed.

Medieval World · 500 – 1500

c. 1450

Approximate date

Johannes Gutenberg · Mainz

Cast metal type, oil-based ink and a screw press combine into a repeatable printing system.