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What is
History of Books?
Before books many
cultures had a rich oral tradition. This was a
method of passing on cultural stories, history and
mythology through professional storytellers. Many
scholars believe Homer's Iliad is a recorded
version of one such oral tale. Other ancient
cultures used images preserved on rock or clay
tablets to record their intellectual and cultural
history.
Middle-Eastern,
Greek, Roman and Arabic civilisations all used an
alphabetical system to record texts; the Chinese
were also early developers of a written language
and preserved texts.
In the Middle
Ages, monasteries produced books referred to as
"illustrated manuscripts." Monks handwrote and
beautifully illustrated religious texts. Following
the invention of paper by the Chinese and the
printing press in Europe in the 15th century,
non-religious texts began to become more prevalent
in Europe and learning and scholarship was slowly
revolutionised to lead to the Age of Enlightenment.
Another revolutionary outcome of the rise of
printing was the Protestant Revolution, because
Martin Luther spread his religious doctrines
through mass printing.
It was not until
later times, the 19th century, that mass
literacy-the ability to read-became standard in
European cultures, and illiteracy is still a
problem amongst poor, uneducated and recently
immigrated people in all countries.
For more
information and a timeline on the history of books,
check out:
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