While Gutenberg never financially benefited from his printing press, he approached the release of it like a true business person. By choosing to print the Bible first, Gutenberg ensured the widest audience possible for the unveiling of his invention and even considered international distribution. Even the amount of decoration included in each book was dependent on how much the owner was willing to spend. Much like publishers of today, it's release boiled down to money.The process by which this book was printed and later embellished is fascinating. Today, we are accustomed to creating everything in one medium - the computer. But the Gutenberg Bible was a different animal, requiring first, the printing of the main text, followed by hand drawn text and illustrations. In this way, each book was unique. Fabulous!
Overall, a beautiful clarity marks this book's design. The generous margins and gutters cleanly separate the justified black text from the illustrative elements. The white space gives plenty of room to breath and the line lengths are relatively short. Simple design choices enhance the navigation within the main text: Prominent red drop caps are easy indicators of new paragraphs, while red ink used on the first letter of each sentence make what may otherwise be a hard-to-read justified, blocky text, legible. The typeface, which emulates hand-written calligraphy (as previous books were created), is a challenge to read but considering the time when this book was printed, is forgivable.
I especially love the way the illustrations add a beautiful interlude from the text. They interact with the text without distracting from it. Small elements, such as the image pictured above, help break the monotony of the text and add a nice surprise while reading.
