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Chapter 299: Printing Skills Completed

During the Northern Song Dynasty, craftsmen from great countries emerged in large numbers, promoting the frequent emergence of scientific and technological innovation talents.

Among the four great inventions, printing, the compass, and gunpowder were all upgraded in the Song Dynasty.

Among them, printing technology, from engraving to movable type, has a world-class significance for cultural communication.

Bi Sheng, the inventor of movable type printing, was a small figure a thousand years ago, but he was a big figure who influenced the world for thousands of years.

Bi Sheng's invention of movable type printing was a great revolution in the history of printing and one of the four great inventions in ancient China.

It has opened up a broad path for the development of China's cultural economy and made significant contributions to promoting the development of world civilization.

From the 13th century to the 19th century, the movable type printing invented by Bi Sheng spread all over the world, and he can be called a great revolutionary in the history of printing.

To be fair, Bi Sheng invented movable clay type printing.

Although it looks bulky and primitive, the basic principles are similar to modern printing technology.

An iron frame is lined up to serve as a printing plate, and then baked on the fire.

These are commonly used characters, which often appear multiple times on a board. Generally, there are more than twenty character models for each.

"Bi Sheng often peeks at the craftsmen's engravings outside the carving workshop and understands the hard work of the craftsmen."

When you want to print, you take an iron frame and put it on the iron plate, and then arrange the typefaces densely.

“It wasn’t until the Westernization Movement of the Qing Dynasty, when modern printing was introduced from the West, that people again recognized the value of Bi Sheng’s movable type printing.”

"The technology of movable type printing was accidentally recorded in "Mengxi Bi Tan" by Shen Kuo, a scientist in the Northern Song Dynasty, due to personal relationships."

"The simple family tradition allowed Bi Sheng to receive a good education when he was young."

"He accidentally touched the master's arm, and one word in the last line was broken. As a result, the entire board that the master had worked so hard to carve was scrapped."

As a result, the typefaces arranged on the board were as smooth as a whetstone.

"Bi Sheng learned the wood carving technique from the master carver, and he studied it for many years."

"When he was 13 years old, Bi Sheng took part in the autumn examination."

"Bi Sheng was invited by many carving workshops because of his good handwriting."

"One day, the master was carving the "Lanting Preface" by Wang Xizhi, a great calligrapher of the Jin Dynasty. Bi Sheng was watching and pondering."

"With my father's support, I went to Jiangnan and entered Bianjing, which broadened my mind and horizons."

This allows for a wider selection of materials for movable type printing and higher printing efficiency.

Bi Sheng's movable type printing method is to use clay to engrave characters, and the thickness of the characters is the same as the edge of the copper coin.

He was both an innovator in woodblock printing and a pioneer in the invention of modern movable type printing.

"When he was 15 years old, Bi Sheng decided to study abroad."

Bi Sheng used his brain and hands to tell how a hard-working and intelligent common man left his name in history, and wrote history with his unique craftsmanship, making himself a wave in this history.

Use two pieces alternately to improve work efficiency.

This piece has just been printed and the other piece is ready.

"Although the master did not blame him, Bi Sheng was very sad. He was determined to improve engraving and printing."

One piece is being printed, the other is a typesetting die.

Therefore, the world's evaluation of Bi Sheng has two sentences.

"With his full talent, the young Bi Sheng overcame the Confucian scholars who were much older than him and won the reputation of the scholar in white."

Shen Kuo: Regarding the principles of movable type printing developed by Bi Sheng, I recorded it in "Mengxi Bi Tan".

When the medicine on it starts to melt, press it on the surface with a flat plate.

In today's digital age, the importance of paper books may have diminished, but Bi Sheng's contribution to human civilization will always be remembered.

"In 982 AD, Bi Sheng was born into a scholarly family in Hubei and also into a family of engraving and printing."

When the fonts are not in use, use paper strips as labels and classify them according to rhyme part.

In the scientific and technological map of ancient China, Bi Sheng has an important historical position.

"It is a pity that such an invention, which is conducive to the popularization of knowledge and the advancement of civilization, was not widely promoted in the dynasties after the Northern Song Dynasty."

"The four great inventions are representatives of the development of science and technology in ancient my country and are also the scientific and technological innovations that the Chinese are most proud of."

Movable type printing is not only a technology, but also a symbol of civilization.

First set up an iron plate, mix rosin, wax, and paper ash on it to make a medicine and then cover it.

"At the age of 5, Bi Sheng became enlightened and enlightened."

When printing, two iron plates are usually made.

Each character is made into a character mold and grilled over fire to make it hard.

Each character has several character models, such as zhi, ye.

"My father Bi Shiqi is a famous calligrapher and a master of engraving."

Later, wooden movable type, copper movable type, and lead movable type appeared one after another.

Uncommon characters can be baked anytime and anywhere, and can be made quickly.

He believed that if only two or three copies were printed, it would not be as efficient as engraving.

But if you want to print dozens, or even hundreds, of thousands of copies, movable type printing is much faster than block printing.

Before the invention of movable type printing, Bi Sheng was familiar with block printing.

The engravings are all made of wood, but when Bi Sheng invented movable type printing.

Instead of using the simpler wooden type, clay type was used.

The reason why Bi Sheng is like this is that the texture of the wood is sparse and dense, and it will become uneven when exposed to water.

The wooden movable type type templates are easy to stick to the chemicals, and once arranged in the iron frame, it is not easy to remove.

By using clay to bake character molds, these problems can be easily solved.

After one typesetting is completed, bake it with fire to melt the agent.

Just wipe it with your hands, and the lettering will fall off on its own without being stained by the medicine.

"Before the invention of printing, hand-copied books were one of the important ways of cultural transmission and even developed into a book-copying industry."

“During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, driven by hundreds of schools of thought, the right and ability to read and write extended from the aristocracy to the scholar class and even the common people.”

"In order to realize their ideals, the scholar class began to copy books during their study tours."

"During the Han Dynasty, aristocratic families were deeply influenced by Confucian classics, and scholarly families were formed."

"They have financial strength and a stronger desire to study. Copying books alone can no longer meet their actual needs."

"So they were willing to pay people to copy books, and this practice of private copying became more and more common."

"The disadvantages of copying books are obvious. Not only is it time-consuming and labor-intensive, but it is also easy to make mistakes."

“What reversed the trend of copying books was the emergence of woodblock printing.”

“Block printing greatly accelerated the copying of books.”

"In the Northern Song Dynasty, engraving and printing books became a common practice, and the number was astonishing."

"However, the flaws of block printing are also obvious."

"To print a book and carve so many boards, the engraver is very hard-working and laborious."

"If one word on a board is wrong or needs to be changed, the entire board will be invalid."

"If a book is no longer reprinted, the entire set of boards will be useless and cannot be reused. Storage takes up space, resulting in huge waste."

"For example, the Tripitaka published in the early Northern Song Dynasty had more than 5,000 volumes, and a total of 130,000 boards were carved, which took 12 years."

"The emergence of movable type printing in the Northern Song Dynasty and the fulfillment of Bi Sheng's historical position are inseparable from the general social environment."

"Song Taizong determined that the prime minister must be a scholar. Song Taizong also said that he liked reading."

"Song Renzong is also famous for his literary governance. He organized the compilation of "New Book of Tang" and "New History of the Five Dynasties", and made great progress in poetry, ancient Chinese and Neo-Confucianism."

Su Shi: The movable type printing invented by Bi Sheng was a revolution in the entire history of printing and made great contributions to the development of Chinese civilization and society.

Before Bi Sheng invented movable type printing, there were only copying, rubbing and engraving printing.

It is cumbersome and laborious, consumes materials and is time-consuming. Not only is it inconvenient to store, it also has typos and is difficult to correct.

The movable type printing method invented by Bi Sheng is simple, flexible, convenient and lightweight. The production process is to first use clay to make individual characters with uniform specifications, and then use fire to harden them.

Make them into clay type, and then sort them into wooden grids.

Generally, a few to dozens of commonly used characters are reserved to prepare for typesetting.

When typesetting, use a framed iron plate as the base, and apply a layer of medicine mixed with rosin, wax, and paper ash on it.

Then pick out the required clay movable type one by one from the spare wooden grid and arrange them into the frame.

When it is full, it becomes a plate and then roasted over fire.

After the agent has melted slightly, use a flat plate to flatten the lettering.

After the agent cools and solidifies, it becomes a pattern.

When printing, just brush ink on the pattern, apply paper, and apply a certain amount of pressure.

After printing, use fire to bake the agent.

With a gentle shake, the clay movable type will fall off the iron plate and can be used again next time.

The clay movable type and wood movable type typesetting invented by Bi Sheng were a fundamental reform in the development of printing, a scientific summary of long-term practical experience, and made a great contribution to the exchange of Chinese culture.

"The emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty advocated the promotion of culture and restraint of martial arts, which will naturally lead to the formation of a social consensus among the government and the public that it is shameful to be unlearned and unskilled."

"The Northern Song Dynasty considered winning over intellectuals and expanding the basis of its rule."

"Significantly increasing the number of Jinshi scholars, with the average annual enrollment being fourteen times that of the Tang Dynasty."

“The economic treatment of officials in the Northern Song Dynasty was ten times that of the Han Dynasty and more than twice that of the Tang Dynasty.”

"Such a high income enables them to focus on reading, writing and cultural dissemination."

"The emperors of the Northern Song Dynasty also attached great importance to the book industry, collecting a large number of ancient books scattered among the people, setting up cultural and historical libraries, and carrying out library management and research."

"Especially as a government-run library, Chongwen Yuan has a collection of more than 80,000 volumes and covers a wide range of subjects."

"The rulers of the Northern Song Dynasty welcomed scientific and technological talents and scientific and technological inventions."

"Someone presented the method of making gunpowder and was rewarded by the emperor."

"Someone built an eight-carriage ship and was praised by the government."

"Scientist Shen Kuo studied astronomy and calendars in his spare time, so the imperial court simply transferred him to the position of Tianjian, responsible for observing astronomical phenomena and compiling almanacs, so that professional people could do professional things."

"This incentive orientation brings historic opportunities for technological iteration and industrial upgrading, and Bi Sheng unknowingly stands at the forefront of the times."

"Based on woodblock printing, Bi Sheng invented wood movable type printing."

"In 1006 AD, Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty issued an imperial edict asking Bi Sheng to co-print the "Book of the Nation"."

"In order to rush to print the "Book of China", Bi Sheng promoted wood movable type printing in the eight major printing houses in Bianjing."

"In 1018 AD, due to changes in temperature, the wooden movable type was deformed and the lettering was uneven, and the "State Book" was actually damaged."

"Song Zhenzong was furious and ordered the eight major seal masters to be severely punished."

"Bi Sheng acted righteously and took the initiative to surrender, but was thrown into jail."

Wang Anshi: Bi Sheng was able to invent movable type printing because he was inspired by his son playing house.

After Bi Sheng invented movable type printing, he introduced his invention to his juniors without reservation.

Bi Sheng first made small squares out of fine clay and carved convex reverse characters on them one by one.

Bake them hard with fire and place them in wooden grids according to the rhymes and vowels.

Then spread adhesive on an iron plate, and arrange the character prints one by one according to the words and paragraphs.

Then put an iron frame around it and heat it with fire.

When the adhesive cools slightly, use a flat plate to flatten the layout. After it is completely cooled, you can print.

After printing, the printing plate is dried with fire to melt the adhesive, and the movable type is removed one by one and saved for the next typesetting.

The junior fellow students couldn't help but admire it and quickly asked how they came up with such a clever method.

There are more than 5,000 volumes of the Tripitaka, and a total of 130,000 boards were carved, which took 12 years.

If Bi Sheng's movable type printing technique was used, it could be completed in a few months.

It was precisely because of such high efficiency that Bi Sheng's junior disciples were shocked.

Later, Bi Sheng also explained that Bi Sheng once took his wife and children back to his hometown to worship his ancestors during the Qingming Festival.

The two sons played house, making pots, bowls, tables, chairs, pigs, and people out of mud, and arranged them around as they pleased.

Bi Sheng's eyes suddenly lit up, and he thought he could play house.

Use clay to carve a single-character seal, which can be arranged at will to form an article.

Everyone's children played house, but only Bi Sheng invented movable type printing.

This is because Bi Sheng is the most thoughtful and is always thinking about new ways to improve efficiency.

It is no exaggeration for him to believe that the movable type printing invented by Bi Sheng has established an immortal monument in the historical corridor of science and technology and deserves the respect of the world.

"In 1023 AD, Song Renzong succeeded to the throne and granted amnesty to the world."

"Bi Sheng was released from prison and returned to his hometown after being pardoned. This year, Bi Sheng was forty-two years old."

"After his release, Bi Sheng still did not forget his movable type printing."

"He constantly summed up his experience with wooden movable type, learned lessons from the deformation of wooden movable type due to different wood types, and tried repeatedly."

"Inspired by his son playing house with yellow clay, he finally invented clay movable type printing."

"In 1046 AD, Bi Sheng went to Hangzhou again, opened a printing workshop, recruited many disciples, and promoted clay movable type printing."

“But at the beginning, the promotion of movable type printing was not smooth.”

“The woodblock printing at that time was very exquisite.”

"The quality of clay movable type printing is rough, and typesetting requires workers to be literate."

"The only advantage of movable type printing is that it can print large quantities quickly."

"But this advantage was outweighed by its shortcomings. What was more important was the rejection of movable type printing by the scholar-officials at that time."

"Bi Sheng invented movable type printing, which allowed knowledge to be disseminated cheaply and broke the cultural monopoly of the scholar-officials at that time."

"Even some enlightened literati in the Northern Song Dynasty strongly rejected Bi Sheng's movable type printing."

"In 1051 AD, Bi Sheng went alone to Lingyin Temple to fulfill his wife's vow. On the way, he was assassinated by a killer sent by his old enemy, and he capsized in a ferry and died in the Qiantang River."

"The movable type printing invented by Bi Sheng was not popularized in the Song, Yuan and other dynasties."

"But this invention was first introduced to North Korea by overseas students from Goryeo, and then introduced to Europe by Arab businessmen from the Song Dynasty, making an indelible contribution to the progress and development of human civilization."

"It even promoted the Enlightenment and Renaissance movements in Europe and triggered social changes in Europe."

Xu Guangqi: The invention of Bi Sheng's movable type printing opened up a broad path for the development of Chinese culture and economy and made a major contribution to the development of world civilization.

In the history of world printing, Bi Sheng is a very influential figure.

Bi Sheng's contribution not only changed the history of book printing, but also profoundly affected the development of the entire East Asian civilization.

Bi Sheng was not afraid of difficulties and obstacles, and was brave in innovation. His invention of movable type printing not only made printing more convenient.

It also opened the door to the popularization of knowledge and laid a solid foundation for the cultural inheritance and development of future generations.

The principle of movable type printing is quite simple: letter by letter is carved on a piece of clay.

Then it is hardened with fire to form independent movable type.

These movable types could be used multiple times, greatly improving printing efficiency and making book production faster than ever before.

This technological revolution not only greatly promoted the spread of culture and academics, but also promoted economic and social development.

With the continuous development of movable type printing, the materials of movable type have also gradually improved.

Clay was gradually replaced, and movable type made of wood, copper, and lead appeared one after another.

These improvements made printing more precise and durable, and also laid a solid foundation for the large-scale dissemination of books.

The successful application of movable type printing led to the publication of a large number of books.

Knowledge began to spread to a wider range of people, greatly promoting the prosperity of Chinese culture.

From this point of view, Bi Sheng's historical achievements are enough to shock the past and the present.

(End of this chapter)