Paper and Books - Venice: A Travel Guide to Murano Glass, Carnival Masks, Gondolas, Lace, Paper and More - page 60

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Paper and Books

Venice claims an important position in the history of bookmaking and publishing.

The city's geographic position as a gateway to the East, its preeminence in interna-
tional trade, and its place as a center for knowledge exchange and artisanship made
the Venetian Republic a natural setting for large-scale bookmaking to take root.
Prior to Johannes Gutenberg's invention of moveable type in the 1450s, each and every
book was handmade. Books were precious, expensive, and highly coveted, prized posses-
sions of monasteries and learned collectors wealthy enough to purchase them. Parchment
vellum was made in a laborious process of preparing sheepskin in the tanneries, and a parch-
ment sheath was never discarded, only occasionally scraped down and reused in a new book.
Traditional monastic scriptoria could no longer meet the exploding demand for new books
that occurred over the course of the fifteenth century.
With the innovations in moveable type, engraving, book printing, and distribution by the
late 1400s, Venice was poised to be a leader in this expanding trade. Bookbinding studios,
or legatorie , are documented in Venice by the 1450s, and bookmakers enjoyed esteemed
social status. One of the most influential publishers of the era was Aldus Manutius, whose
legatoria in Venice typeset many scholarly books in Greek and Latin destined for scholars
and universities all over Europe. A French-born engraver named Nicholas Jenson opened
shop in Venice in 1470 after studying under Gutenberg and became an important figure in
the history of type. Based on centuries-old, well-established trade routes, Venetian printers
and publishers found easy distribution channels to the newly emerging booksellers across
Europe.
Book production was a natural art for Venetians, who were already skilled at working
with leather, pigments, and gold leaf. Knowledge of paper-making made its way from Asia
to Europe during the Middle Ages. Venice, with its strategic location as the gateway to the
East, was the natural place for this new art form to take root. From Venice, the tradition of
decorative papers moved south to Florence, where it also flourished.