The invention of Movable-Type Printing in the work of Shen Kuo (1031-1095)

Abstract

This article analyses the jotting n° 307 of the book “Brush Talks from Dream Brook”(Mengxi Bitan), by the scholar Shen Kuo (1031-1095). That jotting presents, by first time in History, themovable-type printing invention. Our analysis of this jotting relates the exposition made by Shen Kuowith the social context of its time, as well as with Shen Kuo’s own personal trajectory as scholar-officialof the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). The performed examination reveals that Shen Kuo highlightsthe movable-type printing invention based on its recurrent interest for technical developments; also, itis concluded that the above-mentioned interest must not be isolated from Shen Kuo´s trajectory withinthe Court, and, finally, that book printing was a noteworthy phenomenon in the society of Shen’s times,for both socioeconomic and political reasons.