Title pages of the original PMM catalogue.
The elaborate wording of the double title page clearly explains the broad scope of the exhibition.
Rear cover of the original Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition catalogue.
Rear cover of the original Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition catalogue.
The exhibition began with a section on typography, including type design and punchcutting as shown in this page opening. 
The exhibition began with a section on typography, including type design and punchcutting as shown in this page opening. 
In the upper left corner of p. 108 we see the note for Winston Churchill's speech. That pamphlet, published in 1940, was one of the last "influential" publications in the exhibition. What fol
In the upper left corner of p. 108 we see the note for Winston Churchill's speech. That pamphlet, published in 1940, was one of the last "influential" publications in the exhibition. What followed was an exhibition of the technology involved with illustration.
First page of the keepsake given to people to attended the PMM exhibition
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First page of the 3-page pamphlet given to attendees at the exhibition.
Pages 2 & 3 of the Printing and the Mind of Man keepsake.
Pages 2 & 3 of the Printing and the Mind of Man keepsake.
The first of two pages of illustrations showing how the original PMM show was arranged.
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
In 1964 Nicolas Barker published an article about the Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition in the German yearbook, Imprimatur  Neue Folge IV – 1963–1964. The article, translated from English into German, was entitled "Der Buchdruck und sein Einfluß auf den menschlichen Geist. Anmerkungen zu einer Ausstellung." It appeared on pp. 99-102. This is the first of two pages of illustrations of the original exhibition published with that article. The upper image provides an idea of how the exhibition was laid out overall. The lower image shows examples of early iron hand-presses rather compactly displayed behind a hand-rail.
The second page of images that Barker published with his German-language article on the Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition. This one shows how some books were displayed in the exhibition
Creative Commons LicenseJeremy Norman Collection of Images - Creative Commons
The second page of images that Barker published with his German-language article on the Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition. This one shows how some books were displayed in the exhibition cases.
Detail map of London, England, United Kingdom Overview map of London, England, United Kingdom

A: London, England, United Kingdom

The Printing and the Mind of Man Exhibition Concentrates on the History of Printing Technology & Texts Influential on Western Civilization

7/16/1963 to 7/27/1963
Upper cover of the 1963 catalogue printed for the exhibition.
Upper cover of the 1963 catalogue printed for the exhibition. The wood-engraved title was by Reynolds Stone.  The shaded type in the background is, of course, Gutenberg's original type.

The lengthy and complex title of its catalogue, with an emblem and tailpiece designed and engraved by Reynolds Stone, read: Catalogue of a display of printing mechanisms and printed materials arranged to illustrate the history of Western civilization and the means of the multiplication of literary texts since the XV century, organised in connection with the eleventh International Printing Machinery and Allied Trades Exhibition, under the title Printing and the Mind of Man, assembled at the British Museum and at Earls Court, London, 16-27 July 1963. The soft-cover catalogue described and illustrated with 32 black & white plates, and a color plate reproducing a page from the Mainz Psalter, more than 656 examples of printing technology and printing, documenting the influence of printing technology and printed texts on the development of Western civilization.

It is probable the exhibition of the history of printing technology occupied more space than the exhibition of printed books, and may also have been more difficult to assemble than the several hundred books exhibited. Throughout the exhibition famous books were exhibited along with examples of the technology involved with their production. For example, on p. 74 the exhibition catalogue described iron handpresses in use at the beginning of the 19th century, and on p. 75-80 they described an elaborate exhibition of the development of printing machines under the heading they called "The Application of Mechanical Power." Following that they began the exhibition of influential books printed in the 19th and 20th centuries.

From my perspective, the history of printing technology, which was at the core of the original Printing and the Mind of Man exhibition, was largely forgotten. What the book trade and many collectors primarily drew from the exhibition was the exhibition of original texts.

The catalogue also described, and illustrated with 16 black & white plates, an exhibition of 163 examples of Fine Printing mounted at the British Museum from July to September 1963. At the end of their Acknowledgements on p. 9 of the catalogue the Supervisory Committee for the exhibition– librarian Frank Francis, typographer and historian of typography Stanley Morison and writer and antiquarian bookseller John Carter– stated:

"We pay tribute to the organizers of the Gutenberg Quincentenary Exhibition of Printing, assembled at Cambridge in 1940 (and prematurely disassembled because of the risks from enemy bombing). It was our original inspiration for several sections of our display, and its invigorating catalogue has been our constant friend."

Comparison of the 641 items described in the catalogue of 1940 with those described in the catalogue of 1963 show a great deal of overlap, especially as Percy Muir and John Carter, who had been prime movers in the exhibition in 1940, were extensively involved with the exhibition of 1963. The 1963 exhibition and its catalogue were, of course, significant expansions and improvements over the early wartime effort.

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