3874 entries. Last updated May 24, 2013.

1450 to 1500 Timeline Outline

  • Eras
  • Themes

The First Printed Newsletters
(Circa 1450)

The Göttingen Model Book, dating to the mid-15th century, contains instructions for the ornamentation of books and the creation of pigments. These methods can be seen in practice in several early Gutenberg Bibles. (View Larger)
Model Book for Manuscript and Printed Book Illumination
(Circa 1450)

The Fra Mauro map, created by the monk around 1450, is oriented with the South at the top, and depicts Asia, Africa, and Europe. The artistry is exceptionally detailed, and quite acurate for its time. (View Larger)
"The Greatest Memorial of Medieval Cartography"
(Circa 1450)

A hall of the Vatican Library. (View Larger)
Establishment of the Vatican Library
(April 30, 1451)

The Sibyllenbuch fragment, the oldest surviving piece of a European book printed with movable type, contains a portion of a German poem about the fate of the Holy Roman Empire.
The Earliest Surviving Remnant of Any European Book Printed by Movable…
(Circa 1452 – 1453)

Lorenzo Valla (View Larger)
The First Latin Translation of Thucydides
(1452 – 1483)

The self-portrait miniature painted by Jean Fouquet.
The Earliest Portrait Miniature and Possibly the Earliest Formal Self-Portrait
(1452 – 1455)

The Giant Bible of Mainz, copied by hand in large characters as to be read from a lectern, shares many artistic characteristics with the Gutenberg Bible, and may haver served as a model for it. (View Larger)
The Giant Bible of Mainz: Possibly the Model for the Typography in the…
(April 4, 1452 – July 9, 1453)

A map of the Inca road system. (View Larger)
The Inca Road System
(1453 – 1533)

A portrait of Mehmed II by Gentile Bellini.
The Ottoman Turks Capture Constantinople
(May 29, 1453)

A depiction of the siege of Constantinople, painted in Paris in 1499. (View Larger)
Byzantine Greek Scholars Carry Manuscripts to Italy
(Circa June 1453)

Johannes Gutenburg.
The 42-Line Bible
(1454)

Possibly the First Printed Edition of the Most Widely Used Medieval Grammar
(Circa 1454)

<p>The 31-line indulgence preserved in the Scheide Library at Princeton.</p>
The Earliest Dated European Document Printed by Movable Type
(October 22, 1454)

The 42-line Gutenberg Bible, completed in in 1456 by Johannes Gutenberg, Johann Fust & Peter Schöffer, is the earliest European book printed from movable type, by a process of Gutenberg's own invention. (View Larger)
Completion of the 42-Line Bible
(1455 – 1456)

An image of Pope Pius II in blessing, from a biographical fresco in the Cathedral Library of Siena. (View Larger)
"The Sale of a Printed Bible"
(March 12, 1455)

The notarial document, drafted by Ulrich Helmasperger, clerk of the Bishopric of Bamberg, royal notary and certified public recorder at the Court of the Archbishop of Mainz, which provides the only contemporary account of the suit filed by Fust against Gutenberg. (View Larger)
Fust Files a Lawsuit against Gutenberg to Recover Money Used for the "Work…
(November 6, 1455)

The First Known Medical or Scientific Work to be Printed, Surviving in Only One Copy
(1456)

Johannes Gutenberg printed the only surviving copy of the Bulla Thurcorum, which instituted special prayers for Christians during the Turkish encroachment in the Balkans as part of an effort to galvanize European unity in preparation for another Crusade. (View Larger)
The Bulla Turcorum of Calixtus III, of Which One Copy Survives
(June 29, 1456)

Pope Calixtus III.
Die Bulla widder die Turcken, also Printed by Gutenberg, of which One Copy Survives
(Circa July 1456)

The colophon of the 1457 Mainz Psalter, featuring the first printer's mark. (View Larger)
The Mainz Psalter. . . .without "Any Driving of the Pen"
(August 14, 1457)

A bust of Johannes Mentlin in the Humanist Library of Sélestat. (View Larger)
A Scribe and Illuminator Adopts the New Technology
(Circa 1458)

A portrait of Charles VII of France by Jean Fouquet.
Charles VII Orders a "Well-Qualified Agent" from his Royal Mints to Travel to Mainz to Learn Printing
(October 4, 1458)

The 36-line Bible, the second printed edition, was most likely published in Bamberg, Germany, around 1458-1460. No printers name appears in the book, but Johannes Gutenberg may have been involved in its publication. (View Larger)
The 36-Line Bible
(Circa 1459 – 1461)

An illuminated page from a copy of the 1459 Mainz Psalter preserved at the Bodelian Library. (View Larger)
The 1459 Mainz Psalter
(August 29, 1459)

The first page of Guillelmus Duranti's Rationale divinorum officiorum. (View Larger)
The First Book Set in Fere-Humanistica or Gotico-Antiqua Types
(October 6, 1459)

An Intermediate Form Between a Collection of Prints and a Blockbook
(Circa 1460 – 1465)

<p>The Latin Bible printed by Johannes Mentelin in Strassbourg before 27 June 1466. ISTC No.: ib00624000.</p> <p> </p>
The Second Printed Edition of the Bible
(1460)

Gutenberg's Last Production? An Early Form of Stereotyping?
(1460 – 1469)

<p>A page from Der Edelstein printed by Albrecht Pfister showing the integration of images with the printed text.</p>
Integrating Illustrations into the Printed Text
(Circa 1460 – 1490)

Printing Required the Simplication of the Graphic Form of the Book
(Circa 1460)

Der Edelstein, or 'the precious stone,' was the first book printed in German and the firt book to use woodcut illustrations, which were hand-pressed after the text was printed. (View Larger)
The First Book Printed in German and the First Dated Book with Woodcuts
(February 14, 1461)

This Biblia Pauperum, or 'pauper's bible,' is the first known work to combine the woodcut images and movable type. (View Larger)
The First Combination of Text and Illustrations in One Printing Forme
(1462 – 1463)

The Schöffer & Fust bible of 1462 was the first dated bible as well as the first to include a printer's mark. (View Larger)
The First Explicitly Dated Bible, with the First Printer's Mark
(August 14, 1462)

<p>The coat of arms of Archbishop Diether von Isenberg, as depicted in the modern stain glass of the Mainz Cathedral.</p>
Warfare Accelerates the Spread of Printing
(October 27, 1462)

The First Publication with a Separate Printed Title Page
(1463)

The First Book Printed in Italy
(Circa 1463)

<p>The first page of a manuscript of <em>De oratore</em> by Cicero, written and illuminated in Northern Italy in the 15th century, and preserved in the British Library</p>
Perhaps the First Book Printed in Italy; One of the First Printed Editions of a Classical Text
(1465)

<p>Sabuncuoglu Serafeddin.</p>
The First Atlas of Pediatric Surgery
(1465)

One of the First Three Printed Editions of Classical Texts
(1465)

Probably One of the Three Earliest Printed Editions of a Classical Text
(Circa 1465)

The panel painting by Hans Memling depicting the Annunciation.
Mary Reading from a Manuscript Book
(Circa 1465 – 1475)

The First Dated Book Printed in Italy Containing the First Printing in Greek
(October 29, 1465)

<p>Portrait of Augustine of Hippo by Philippe de Champaigne.</p>
The Value and Difficulty of Preparing an Accurate Manuscript for Printing
(1466)

The German Mentelin Bible, published by Johann Mentelin in 1466, was the first bible published in a modern language. (View Larger)
The First Edition of the Bible in a Modern Language
(June 1466)

Adolf Rusch's printing of the encyclopedia 'De Sermonum Propietate,
The First Printed Encyclopedia
(1467)

<p>An engraved portrait of Leon Battista Alberti. Engraved by G. Benaglia and published in the 18th century.</p>
The Alberti Cipher
(1467)

The first edition of St. Augustine's 'De Civitate Dei,' meaning City of God, is the oldest printed work for which the original manuscript remains. (View Larger)
Possibly the Earliest Printed Book for which the Printer's Manuscript Remains…
(June 12, 1467)

<p>An engraved portrait of Juan de Torquemada from 1791.</p>
The Earliest Illustrated Printed Book Published in Italy
(December 31, 1467)

<p>Portrait of Pope Paul II by Cristofano dell'Atissimo (1525-1605).</p>
Printing Decreased the Costs of Books by 80%
(1468)

The First Printed Editions of Virgil
(1469 – 1470)

The 'Rome Incunabula,' a collection of six Jewish texts, are thought to be the oldest works printed in Hebrew. (View Larger)
The Earliest Books Printed in Hebrew
(1469 – 1472)

<p>A portrait of Peter Schoffer.</p>
The Earliest Surviving Book List Issued by a Printer
(June 1469 – September 1470)

<p>Wood engraved portrait of Cardinal Basilios Bessarion from the <em>Bibliotheca chalcographica.</em></p>
The First Full Exposition of Plato's Thought Published in the West
(Circa August 27, 1469)

<p>Portrait of Andrea Navagero Beazzano and Augustine by Raphael, 1516.</p>
The Beginning of Printing in Venice
(September 1469)

<p>Augustine, Confessiones, Manuscript on vellum, Germany, first half of 13th century (BPH Ms 83).</p>
The First Printed Edition of the Confessions of St. Augustine
(1470)

<p>A 17th century engraving of The Sorbonne, Paris.</p>
The First Printing Press in France
(1470)

Three Ways that Printing Changed Manuscript Culture
(Circa 1470)

The typographer's mark of Venetian Nicolas Jensen, creator of the first Roman-style typeface. (View Larger)
The First Book Printed in Jenson's Roman Type
(1470)

The First Printed Concordance of the Bible
(1470 – 1474)

Probably the First Printed Book with an Index
(November 10, 1470)

Archbishop Niccolò Perotti of Spiponto was the first to suggest Vatican censorship and review of all printed works after noticing numerous errors in an edition of Pliny.
The First Call for Press Censorship
(1471)

The First Basic Greek Grammar and the First Book Printed in Greek
(Circa 1471)

Published to Raise Money to Repel the Turks
(April 1471)

The Only Formal Roman Treatise on Geography
(September 25, 1471)

This edition of Roberto Valturio's 'De re militari' contains the first woodcuts on a scientific subject, used not for artistic embellishment but for diagraming and explanation. (View Larger)
The First Printed Book on Technology with the First Woodcuts on a Scientific…
(1472)

The Earliest Printings of Plato in the Fifteenth Century
(1472 – 1475)

The First Medical or Scientific Treatise to be First Published as a Printed Book Rather than a Manuscript
(April 21, 1472)

Scribes Attempt to Block Competition from Printers
(May 12, 1472)

The First Map Included in a Printed Book
(November 19, 1472)

The First Book Printed in English
(1473 – 1474)

First Printed Edition of Philobiblon
(1473)

The Earliest Printed Music
(Circa 1473)

The First Printed Book Issued with Pagination
(Circa 1473 – 1474)

The First Technical Dictionary
(1473 – 1474)

Possibly the Earliest Physician's Library Preserved Intact
(1474)

Probably the Best-Selling 15th Century Printed Book by a Living Author
(1474)

The First Catalogue of the Vatican Library
(1475)

The First Printed Cookbook
(Circa 1475 – 1479)

Probably the First Printed Civil Law Book
(January 26, 1475)

The First Dated Book Printed in Hebrew
(February 17 – February 18, 1475)

The First Printed Edition of the First Geography Contains No Maps
(September 13, 1475)

The first edition of Konrad von Megenberg's 'Buch der Natur' was both the first German natural history and the first woodcut-illustrated natural history, including this woodcut from the chapter on zoology. (View Larger)
The First Illustrated Printed Book on Natural History
(October 30, 1475)

The First "Modern" Title Page
(1476)

The First Printed Compilation of Works on Biology
(1476)

The First Book Printed Entirely in Greek Type
(January 30, 1476)

The First Book Printed in French
(April 18, 1476)

William Caxton Opens the First Printing Office in England
(September 29, 1476)

The First Dated Printed Book Containing Music
(October 12, 1476)

The First Recorded Piece of Printing Done in England
(December 13, 1476)

The First Book with Engraved Maps
(1477)

The First Printed Herbal
(May 9, 1477)

The First Dated Book Printed in England
(November 18, 1477)

Leonardo Builds a Programmable Mechanical Automaton
(1478)

The First Printed Edition of Dioscorides
(July 1478)

The First Printed Book on Wine
(October 1478)

The First Dated Printed Book on Arithmetic and the Operation of the Abacus
(December 10, 1478)

The Earliest Portrait of an Author in a Printed Book
(August 28, 1479)

A Typical Print Run
(1480)

The First Appearance of a "Musical Idea" in a Printed Book
(March 21, 1480)

The First Concrete Evidence of the Existence of Matrices for the Casting of Type Fonts
(September 1480)

The First Printed Herbal with Illustrations and Probably the First Series of Illustrations on a Scientific Subject
(Circa 1481 – 1482)

The Earliest Printing of Any Book of the Bible in Greek
(1481)

The First World Map to Show the Results of the Age of Discovery
(1482)

The Most Famous Textbook Ever Published
(May 25, 1482)

The Earliest Medical Work Printed in English
(Circa 1483)

Among the Earliest Printed Mathematical Tables
(July 4, 1483)

One of the Earliest Acknowledgments of Gutenberg's Invention
(September 13, 1483)

The Sultan Prohibits Turks from Printing
(1484)

The First Edition of Plato's Opera, Printed by the First Press to Employ Women
(1484 – 1485)

Rules of the Library, Merton College, Oxford, 1484
(November 3, 1484)

Leonardo's Anatomical Drawings
(Circa 1485 – 1516)

The First Book Illustration Printed in Three Colors
(1485)

An Early Depiction of a Child Wrecking a Book
(Circa 1485)

"A Horse, A Horse, My Kingdom for a Horse."
(August 1485)

The Earliest Work Printed in England to Contain Color Printing
(1486)

The First Printed Work on Classical Architecture
(1486 – August 16, 1487)

The First Printed Haggadah
(1486)

The First Illustrated Travel Book: An International Bestseller
(February 11, 1486)

The Earliest Known Type Specimen
(April 1, 1486)

The First Known Author's Copyright
(September 1, 1486 – May 21, 1487)

Discovery of a Lost Painting by Michelangelo?
(1487 – 1488)

The First Separately Printed Treatise on Diet
(March 23, 1487)

Handbook for Witch-Hunters and Inquisitors
(April 1487)

The Beginning of Prepublication Censorship
(November 17, 1487)

The First Printing of a Major Greek Work in its Original Language
(1488 – 1489)

The First Complete Printed Hebrew Bible
(April 22, 1488)

Gershom Soncino Sells the First Copy of His First Book
(December 19 – December 29, 1488)

The First and Second Books Printed in Lisbon
(July 16 – November 25, 1489)

The Earliest Known Dance Notation
(Circa 1490)

The Most Complete Pattern Book from Medieval Britain
(Circa 1490)

The First Medical Book with Anatomical Illustrations
(July 26, 1491)

Restoring the Whole of Spain to Christian Rule
(January 30, 1492)

Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand Expell the Jews from Spain
(March 31, 1492)

Departure of Columbus for the New World & the Expulsion of the Jews from Spain
(July 30 – October 12, 1492)

Sultan Bayezid II Wellcomes Jewish Refugees from Spain
(August 1492)

The First Printed Grammar of a Vernacular
(August 18, 1492)

The First Eyewitness Report to Become a Bestseller
(February 15, 1493)

The Nuremberg Chronicle
(June 12 – December 23, 1493)

The First Book Printed in the Ottoman Empire
(December 13, 1493)

The Best Medium for Long Term Information Storage
(1494)

The Earliest Subject Bibliography
(1494)

Probably the Earliest European Depiction of Native Americans
(1494)

The "Book Fool"
(February 11, 1494)

The First Great General Work on Mathematics
(November 10 – November 20, 1494)

The First English Book Printed on Paper Made in England
(1495 – 1496)

The First Printed Bibliography on Secular Subjects
(1495)

The Aldine Theocritus: Scholarly Compromises in Running a Publishing House
(February 1495 – 1496)

The Editio Princeps of Aristotle in Greek
(November 1495 – June 1498)

The First Record of a Privilege Granted for Music Printing
(May 25, 1498)

The Persistence of Illuminated Manuscript Production
(Circa 1499)

The First Illustration of a Printing Office & Bookshop in a Printed Book
(February 18, 1499)