Lee Junghyo

Curator

National Library of Korea

A Technology 78 Years Ahead of Gutenberg: The Story of Korean Movable Metal Type

Korea has a long history, about 5,000 years, but the earliest records related to books only trace back to 1,500 years ago. Gososeon (古朝鮮), the first country in Korea, was established around 2,300 BC and books were generally hand-copied in Korea. In the 7th or 8th century, until woodblock printing was introduced and around the 13th century, the adoption of movable metal type brought about a dramatic advancement in printing technology. The history of printing in Korea is shorter compared to that in Egypt, Mesopotamia, or China. However, various unique printing techniques not found in other parts of the world were developed in Korea, likely to suit its relatively small population. Koreans mainly borrowed Chinese characters (although they had their own phonetic writing system), and only a small elite group could read and write them. There was no need to produce books in large quantities, but the topics and content people wanted were diverse. Movable type printing proved ideal to meet this need for limited copies of a wide variety of books.

In the West, Gutenberg’s 42-line Bible is widely recognized as a representative example of movable metal type printing. Some may even mistakenly believe that it was the first book ever printed with movable metal type. However, in Korea, movable metal type was developed approximately 78 years prior to Gutenberg’s invention, and it featured a greater variety of typefaces—an achievement of significant historical importance. Despite this, Korea’s movable metal type printing remains relatively little known to the wider world. This article aims to explore the historical significance and technological excellence of Korean movable metal type.

From Woodblock to Movable Metal Type: The Evolution of Korean Printing Technology

To understand movable metal type printing, it is essential to first examine woodblock printing. Woodblock printing is a technique of carving text or images into a wooden block, applying ink to the block, and then pressing it onto paper to create a print. It is known that this method began to be used during the Three Kingdoms period in Korea. A single woodblock could be used to print four pages of a book—two on the front and two on the back. The exact time when Koreans began using woodblock printing is not clearly known. However, it is estimated that woodblock printing had already begun by the 7th or 8th century at the latest, based on the existence of The Great Dharani Sutra of Immaculate and Pure Light (Mugujeonggwang daedaranigyeong), one of the oldest surviving woodblock prints in the world, which was printed around 751 during the Silla Kingdom.

Photo 1. Wood block [printing block] / a plank of wood refers to a wooden board measuring 22-24 inches wide and 13-15 inches tall (ⓒ National Library of Korea)

The greatest advantage of woodblock printing is that you can make multiple copies of the text or images carved into the block. The problem is that you can only print the same content. Also, you need a large piece of wood and a skilled engraver. This method was too costly to produce many different types of books. People needed a way to produce a wide range of books but in small quantities. The result was movable type printing. Just like assembling Lego blocks, individual characters could be combined and printed whenever needed.

Initially, people used wood for movable type because it was easy to obtain and they could make wooden type using existing carved woodblocks. Eventually, they started making type from metal for greater durability. Movable type used in Korea can be divided into wooden type and metal type. Wooden type originated from woodblock printing, which began in China and was also used in Korea, whereas metal type was uniquely developed and used only in Korea. This article will focus exclusively on metal type.

It is estimated that metal type was produced in Korea before the 13th century. The world’s oldest copy of a metal type print that has survived to today, however, is the volume known as Jikji (1377, Goryeo Dynasty). The book is currently housed in France (gallica.bnf.fr). As seen in the book, the technology for metal type printing and metal type production was somewhat crude in the early Goryeo period. Both metal type casting and printing techniques saw significant advancements during the Joseon period.

Metal type was produced in various ways during the Joseon period. However, due to high production costs and technical limitations, it was used only by the government, while woodblock printing and wooden movable type printing were still used in the private sector. All matters related to metal movable type were overseen by a government bureau known as the Jujaso (鑄字所), or “Office of Type Casting”, and the first metal movable type produced during the Joseon Dynasty was called Gyemija (癸未字). The early metal types of the Joseon Dynasty were generally large, probably because people were not yet skilled enough to make smaller type. As time went by, however, type became smaller and more stylish. Around 40 kinds of metal type were produced during the Joseon Dynasty, using materials such as iron, copper, and lead. In addition, some types were made by a powerful person not by the government.

Photo 2. 『Shipchilsachangogeumtongyo』, a book housed in the National Library of Korea, was made using Gyemija (ⓒ National Library of Korea)

Early metal types were produced continuously in several versions, so many of them look quite similar. Gapinja (甲寅字) underwent six changes. In some cases, multiple types of metal type were mixed within a single book. Compared to the Gyemija, Gapinja is smaller and more refined.

There are many more kinds of type. Let’s look at a couple more. The Photo 3 was printed using Jeonsaja (全史字) and the Photo 4 is in a Japanese style Shin-Yeonhwalja (新鉛活字). Jeonsaja was a copper type made in 1816 by the royal family's relatives to print books, and was actively used in the private sector. Shin-Yeonhwalja is a modern Japanese lead type introduced in the late 19th century, small in size at 0.4 X 0.7 cm, and is the last metal type of Joseon.

Photo 3. Mooreungsokjip was made using Jeonsaja (ⓒ National Library of Korea)

Photo 4. Yeoksajipryak was made using Shin-Yeonhwalja (ⓒ National Library of Korea))

In the West, publication transitioned directly from hand copying to metal type printing. In East Asia —specifically Korea—, however, there was a more complicated development process between the two methods. This process included the use of woodblock printing and wooden movable type before the adoption of metal movable type, reflecting a gradual evolution in printing practices. Because of this, some argue that printing technology with movable type from Asia—specifically Korea—may have spread to the West. Whether this is true or not is uncertain, but it’s an intriguing idea.

Unfortunately, a great amount of Korea’s documentary heritage including metal type print has become scattered in and outside the country due to wars and smuggling, and an overall systematic management system has yet to be introduced. Since the 1980s, the National Library of Korea has been investigating and compiling lists of old Korean books housed in overseas institutions and private libraries in Korea. You can see the result of these efforts in the Korea Old & Rare Collection Information System (KORCIS, www.nl.go.kr/korcis).