The history of books

By ltnu6
  • 600 BCE

    scrolls

    scrolls
    The first form of "books" were scrolls, dating back to around 2400 BC. These were long, rolled-up sheets made from papyrus, a plant-based material. Later, wax tablets, which were like notebooks with a wax coating, emerged. Around the 1st century CE, the codex, a book with individual sheets bound together at the spine, became a more popular format.
  • 500 BCE

    hand-bound, elaborate manuscripts

    hand-bound, elaborate manuscripts
    Hand-bound, elaborate manuscripts, often called illuminated manuscripts, are books created by hand with detailed illustrations and decorations, typically using gold, silver, or bright paints. These manuscripts were popular in Western Europe during the Middle Ages, with the majority created between 500 and 1600 CE. They often feature Christian scriptures, practices, and lore.https://www.britannica.com/topic/publishing/Books-in-classical-antiquity
  • 201 BCE

    The codex

    The codex
    The codex, a book-like format with individual pages bound together, was the second major type of book after scrolls. Romans developed the first codices in the 1st century CE, made from parchment and bound with wooden covers, making them more durable and portable than scrolls. The codex's advantages, such as being easier to carry and navigate, contributed to its widespread adoption, particularly with the rise of Christianity.
  • 1452

    Printed books

    Printed books
    In 1452, Gutenberg produced the one book to come out of his shop: a Bible. It's estimated he printed 180 copies of the 1,300-paged Gutenberg Bible, as many as 60 of them on vellum. Each page of the Bible contained 42 lines of text in Gothic type, with double columns and featuring some letters in color.

  • classical literature, religious works, and other forms of literature like plays written in English

    classical literature, religious works, and other forms of literature like plays written in English
    After printed books like the Bible, a wider variety of texts became accessible. This included classical literature, religious works, and other forms of literature like plays written in English. The printing press revolutionized book production, making it cheaper and quicker to create, which led to a wider range of texts becoming available.
    https://school.eb.com/levels/high/article/books-of-Samuel/65245