Once the moveable type had been invented, printing presses spread quickly throughout Europe. Print shops housed one or many presses. It is estimated that the work day consisted of 12-14 hours of grueling physical labor under poor conditions. Estimations vary, but it is thought that 300 pages could be printed in a shop each day.

The image below shows two men hard at work at a printing press. Click on the image. What clues in this image suggest that the printing press was a faster way to make books? Record your answers in your notes.

Now you will see the press in action.

Watch an instructional video depicting the operation of a wooden hand press, much like the one in the image above.