Printer, born in Normandy, NW France. He studied at the University of Paris, learned printing in Normandy, and practised his trade in England. In 1497 his edition of the Latin poet Terence appeared, the first classic to be printed in London. He became printer to Henry VIII (1508), and introduced roman type in England (1509).
Richard Pynson (born 1448 in Normandy, died 1529) was one of the first printers of English books. 49-51) and/or a pouchmaker before he turned to printing (Plomer, 1925, p. It is possible that he is identical with one Richard Pynson who was enrolled as a student in Paris in 1464 (Plomer, 1925, p.
He is also mentioned as being a bookbinder, although he probably did not bind the books himself (Plomer, 1925, p. 190) that Pynson at one time worked as an assistant to William Caxton – whom he once called "my worshipful master" (Duff, 1906, p.
Pynson began his printing career not after 1492, the year in which he printed Alexander Grammaticus’ Doctrinale, his first dated book. He had probably learned his trade from Guillaume de Talleur, a printer in Rouen, whom he charged with printing at least two books in the early 1490s (Peddie, 1927, p. It is likely that he took over William de Machlinia's premises after de Machlinia's death (Duff, 1906, p. it is also possible that Julian Notary in turn took over Pynson’s vacated place in 1501 (Clair, 1965, p.
During the first years, he worked in St Clement Danes just outside Temple Bar, but he moved inside Temple Bar in 1501, possibly because of xenophobic riots (Plomer, 1909, pp. (Plomer, 1925, p. 65) Pynson became King’s Printer to Henry VII (and subsequently to Henry VIII) in 1506 (Neville, 1990), an office that carried not only great prestige but also an annuary of two pounds, later raised to four pounds (Clair, 1965, p. He was recognized as an expert at printing law texts (e.g., statutes of the King) and also printed many books of a religious nature like Books of Hours or Missals. He is noted for being one of the first English printers to print a classical text – several plays of the Roman poet Terence – and he was the first publisher of the famous Wayes to Jerusalem by Sir John Mandeville, a book that has been called "an ancestor of science fiction". 15)
Other first printings by Pynson include popular romances like Sir Tryamour and a translation of the German Narrenschiff by Sebastian Brant. Considering that he was the King’s Printer, it is not surprising that the historically most important book he ever printed – the Assertio septem sacramentorum adversus Martinum Lutherum (1521), which netted King Henry VIII the title of "Defensor Fidei" – was produced on behalf of his royal employer (Steinberg, 1955, p. Strangely enough, he never printed any travel accounts by Christopher Columbus, Amerigo Vespucci, or other famous explorers, although it would have been the logical thing to do since there were many versions in several European languages at that time – and neither did any other English printer of Pynson’s time print them. Literary patronage, still important in the early printing period, was not an important factor for his press (Lathrop, 1922/23, p. Like the other printers of his time, he used woodcuts and initials, often of a higher quality than those of his competitors; (Plomer, 1925, p. 149)
Pynson printed more than 500 books during his lifetime, more than 75% of which were printed after 1500 and are therefore not counted as 'incunabula'. He was not as productive as for example Wynkyn de Worde, Caxton’s one-time assistant, but his books were of a higher quality. (Plomer, 1903, p. 3) It is interesting to note that he does not seem to have imported books, since his name does not appear on the Customs rolls (Hellinga/Trapp, p.
Pynson died in 1529 at the age of 80 or 81. (Plomer, 1925, p. 147)
In sum, Richard Pynson seems to have been a very competent, quite risk-averse, and fairly successful printer. Judging by his will, he was moderately well-off but not as wealthy as, for example, Wynkyn de Worde (Plomer, 1925, p. Calling him "a systematic, careful man of business" (Bennett, 1952, p. And he seems not to have been without "a sense of style that raised him above other English printers of the fifteenth century [...]" (Chappell, 1970, p. 77), so it is not surprising that he produced what has been called "[...] the finest book that had been printed in England up to that time", the Morton Missal of 1500. (Plomer, 1925, p.
Pynson's usage of devices, title-pages, types, and other technical aspects lend support to the common image of him as a highly skilled craftsman and capable businessman who invented nothing but was quite good at improving upon innovations others had made before.
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