What are cradle books?

Gutenberg Bible

All the books that were printed when printing was in its babyhood -from the year 1455 to 1500- are called "cradle books." Some of the cradle books are among the most beautiful books ever made. Often they were decorated by hand after they were printed.

Probably the most famous of all the cradle books are the Gutenberg Bibles. Gutenberg is often called the inventor of printing with movable type. For a long time people thought the Gutenberg Bible was printed by Gutenberg. But very likely a printer named Schoeffer printed it. How surprised Schoeffer would have been if he had known that copies of this book would someday be worth their weight in gold.

The first book ever printed in English came from the press of the English printer William Caxton in 1474. The book was about the ancient city of Troy.