When it was people who understood that word of mouth is not the most reliable way and invented writing, it is not known for certain. The logical development of writing was the invention of books. They are known to have been written for a long time by hand, which increased their cost and production time. The invention of the printing press solved the problem, and also gave the world a new profession - the printer.
Who is that?
Today it is one of the rare but sought-after professions. A printer is a printing worker, a specialist whose responsibilities include working with equipment intended for the manufacture of printing products: leaflets, letterheads, newspapers, magazines, posters and other printed products. In addition, he must also be able to process finished products (cutting, lamination). A number of skills that a specialist should possess also include the ability to distinguish colors, the ability to mix paints, and the possession of artistic taste. But with every decade, the requirements for it change in proportion to the development of printing equipment. Today, the printer is a high-level operator who manages sophisticated devices using digital technology. Very often, as a rule, in small printing houses, he is required to have a graphic editor.
The largest number of vacancies in the Moscow region. The average salary of a printer in Russia ranges from 30 to 35 thousand rubles.
German beginning
It is believed that the first who invented and began to use a printing press with movable characters was Johannes Gutenberg , a native of Mainz (Germany) . The first book that the inventor printed is considered the Mazarini Bible. She left the machine around 1452. Until 1456, the German first printer published the Latin grammar of Elijah Donatus. For her, Gutenberg cast five different fonts. In Paris, you can see several of its surviving sheets, if you visit the National Museum. In the same period, Gutenberg produced a number of indulgences.
He did not have enough of his means to ensure production, so he contacted the loan shark Johann Fust. This was an unsuccessful partnership for Gutenberg. After litigation, Fust became the owner of the printing house. Gutenberg had to start all over again. From 1455 until his last day, Gutenberg was in the company with Konrad Gumery. With his support, he created a new printing house in which they published Johann Balba's famous work on Latin grammar in those days.
Fight for the name of the first
Due to the fact that in the biography of Gutenberg there are many white spots, researchers from different cities of Germany and countries have repeatedly tried to call their countryman the first printer. The owner of the printing house Johann Fust, Peter Schaeffer and Johann Mentelin were included in the list of first printers. There is some guilt in this confusion and of Gutenberg himself - he did not leave colophons (information about the author at the end of the publication) in his books. Gutenberg proved authorship only on indirect grounds.
Later, most researchers nevertheless agreed that the first place in typography belongs to Gutenberg.
Incunabula
The first printed books of the master tried to make them look like handwritten - they were more expensive. The latter were valued higher also because books from under the loom were not in demand due to superstitions. Nevertheless, the first printed books can be recognized as an art form. They are very beautiful, with harmoniously arranged elegant fonts.
There is even a separate name for the first printed books - incunabula, which translates as “cradle”. A figurative indication of the youngest age of typography. Incunabul survived a little. One of the largest collections is located in the Northern capital of Russia, in the Cabinet of the Faust of the National Library.
The importance of the invention
Handwritten books were very expensive to manufacture, there were few of them, and their cost was available to few. With the advent of the printing press, more people could already afford to have a book. People could learn to read, receive spiritual development. The church elite could no longer control exactly who could receive the knowledge previously hidden from the population. The press allowed the dissemination of new ideas without the control of the church or state, which were vividly discussed. Therefore, the rulers and the church committed actions to destroy books and printing houses, fearing freethinking. But what was forbidden became more interesting.
Pioneers of Russia
If in Europe Gutenberg became the pioneer in the printing business, then Ivan Fedorov is considered the first printer of Russia. The first book of his hand with a well-known release date is The Apostle. There is no exact data on the date of his birth. According to indirect data, Ivan Fedorov was born in 1510-1530. Where exactly he was born, there are no affirmative sources. He himself wrote about Moscow as his homeland and signed Moskvitin, even living in the Principality of Lithuania. Therefore, in Russia it is considered to be his first Russian printer. He is also considered his first printer in Ukraine, since Ivan Fedorov lived in Lviv for a long time, where he developed a printing business. In this city there is a monument to the famous first printer, as well as the Ukrainian Academy of Printing. In Lviv, he was buried in 1583. He also worked in Vienna, Krakow, Dresden.
From annalistic sources it is known that in the second half of the 14th century, Ivan the Terrible, with the blessing of the clergy, begins printing in the Moscow kingdom. For this, masters from Denmark and Poland, as well as Novgorod, were invited. The first Russian printers of the Russian Empire were Marusha Nefedyev and Vasyuk Nikiforov. They continued the printing business of invited foreign artists. Probably, Ivan Fedorov studied with them.
Facts about the profession
The printer is , of course, an important profession today. In addition to promotional products, newspapers and magazines print money.
This profession is bad enough for health. Therefore, Russian printers enjoy privileges: they are entitled to 12 additional days of vacation or a shorter working day. The harm is in constant contact with solvents (petroleum products) and paper dust.
When meeting with a passerby from whom he carries kerosene and whose hands are stained with yellow, black, blue and red, we can safely say: this is a printer.
Both men and women work. Although women are more often provided with work on medium-sized, single-story machines.
Until recent years, there were three specializations: printer of flat, intaglio and letterpress. Today, all specialists work with flat-printing machines.
They celebrate their professional holiday in the Russian Federation on January 13, along with journalists, editorial staff and printing houses - on Press Day. This is the historical release date of the first issue of the Vedomosti newspaper, founded in 1703 by Peter the Great. Separately, a professional holiday. Printer's Day is not marked on the calendar.