Bi Sheng invents movable type
The commoner Bi Sheng carved individual characters in clay that could be composed, printed and recomposed — recorded by the scholar Shen Kuo.
Why it matters
Reusable type is the conceptual leap behind all printing: separate the medium from the message, then recombine. Movable type stayed awkward for Chinese logograms but transformed Korea, then Europe.
People
Bi Sheng · Shen Kuo
Threads
This event sits on Communication.
Related events
Sources
- Encyclopædia Britannica — movable type