incunabula
Pre-1501 printed books
Incunabula are books printed in Europe before 1501—the infancy of printing with movable type.
The term comes from a Latin word meaning cradle or swaddling clothes.
By extension, incunabula can refer to the earliest stages of anything: the incunabula of the internet.
Singular: incunabulum.
Printing press inventor's name
- movable typeReconfigurable printing components
- letterpressPrinting from raised surfaces
- typesettingArranging text for print
- typographyArranging letters for display
press · fifteenth century · typeface · fount · compositor · impression · edition · device
Single-fold page format
- quartoFour-leaf printing format
- octavoBook size, eight leaves
- vellumPrepared calfskin for writing
- parchmentTreated hide for manuscripts
binding · woodcut · illuminated · margin · leaf · gathering · signature · watermark
Ancient bound manuscript
- manuscriptOriginal text before publication
- paleographyStudy of ancient handwriting
- editionSingle published version
- variantsDiffering forms of something
scribal · transmission · exemplar · archetype · emendation · critical apparatus · annotation · marginalia
Lover of books
- antiquarianScholar of old artifacts
- rareSeldom found or seen
- provenanceRecord of ownership
- auctionCompetitive public sale
catalogue · collation · census · facsimile · collection · acquisition · condition · imperfect
Gutenberg
Printing press inventor's name
- movable typeReconfigurable printing components
- letterpressPrinting from raised surfaces
- typesettingArranging text for print
typography · press · fifteenth century · typeface · fount · compositor · impression · edition · device · colophon
folio
Single-fold page format
parchment · binding · woodcut · illuminated · margin · leaf · gathering · signature · watermark · catchword
codex
Ancient bound manuscript
- manuscriptOriginal text before publication
- paleographyStudy of ancient handwriting
- editionSingle published version
variants · scribal · transmission · exemplar · archetype · emendation · critical apparatus · annotation · marginalia · gloss
bibliophile
Lover of books
- antiquarianScholar of old artifacts
- rareSeldom found or seen
- provenanceRecord of ownership
auction · catalogue · collation · census · facsimile · collection · acquisition · condition · imperfect · complete
infancy
Earliest period of life
birth · early · primitive · pioneering · foundational · prototype · first · earliest · emergence · genesis
incunabulamanuscripts
Handwritten or typed originals
illuminated manuscripts · codices · scrolls · typescripts · digital publications