Monday, July 10, 2006
Incunabula Collection
Old books. Drool.
Incunabula or incunables are the very first examples of books, pamphlets, and broadsides printed with moveable type in Western Europe. They range from the very first examples of the two-column Latin Bible produced by Johann Gutenberg in the 1450s to works printed through the end of the year 1500. The term 'incunable' derives from the Latin word cunabula for 'cradle' or 'origin', hinting at their status as the earliest of all books. Incunabula are also sometimes referred to as 'fifteeners' from their appearance in the fifteenth century.