The Shoulders of Goldsmiths

---

Google stands on the shoulders of a goldsmith. So do we all.

ABOVE: Goldsmith shop, Florence; photo: Ingo Jakubke/Pixaby

One morning this spring, I went to google something. Noticing the day’s doodle featured Gutenberg, I uncharacteristically clicked on the link. “Known for the invention of the movable-type printing press,” Wikipedia told me what I already knew, Johannes Gutenberg was “a German goldsmith, inventor, printer, and publisher . . .” Wait, Gutenberg was a goldsmith?

The Information Age we live in now, with all the internet’s power for enabling mass communication, innovation, and disruption, is a direct descendant of the revolution set off by the power of Gutenberg’s 15th-century press. Once information could be shared widely and quickly, it was. Such historical shake-ups as the Reformation, the Renaissance, and all the idea-based eras and developments since are in part the result. The global reach and lightning speed of circulation today are mere matters of degree.

Metalwork Matters

Google’s is more than a general tribute. It’s a fitting acknowledgement of the search engine giant’s own debt to the past. It’s also a tip of the hat to metalsmiths and related technology developers everywhere, because metalwork played an essential part in this goldsmith’s invention — obvious once I’d read on.

“Gutenberg’s method for making type is traditionally considered to have included a type metal alloy and a hand mould for casting type. The alloy was a mixture of lead, tin, and antimony that melted at a relatively low temperature for faster and more economical casting, cast well, and created a durable type.”

Although his goldsmithing appears to have been related to minting coins, Gutenberg also appears to have been at least familiar with jewelry making, specifically lapidary work. “There is evidence that he was instructing a wealthy tradesman on polishing gems, but where he had acquired this knowledge is unknown.”

A lot about Gutenberg is unknown, with many details of his breakthrough uncertain, including who else contributed to it. It was not simply his printing press that changed the world, but that of those on whose shoulders Gutenberg stood, and those who stood on his. Or as the great Isaac Newton wrote in the 17th century: “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”

Classics to State of the Art

Some of the tools, supplies, and equipment in the special Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist Summer 2021 Tool Issue are classics, little changed in centuries. Some are the latest incarnations of recent developments, likely to be improved upon again. More tools and refinements are in the making. We may love our tactile hand tools or the physicality of print. We may embrace CAD/CAM or wikis. But tools and techniques are just that. The essence of a work is how the artist uses any tool to make her or his own mark. Icon of printing he certainly is, yet Gutenberg is even more. Fundamentally, he is a giant of innovation, and it’s an honor to cast our lots with the likes of him.

Goldsmiths and More from Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist Summer 2021

Merle White is Editor-in-Chief of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist. This post is adapted from her column, “The Shoulders of Goldsmiths,” in the Summer 2021 issue.