This catalogue of all printers, bookbinders, booksellers and publishers in Bohemia and its capital Prague (1749-1848) is a follow-up to the reference work Buchwesen in Wien 1750-1850 by Peter R. Frank and Johannes Frimmel. In addition to the companies and their owners, extensive data has been collected on very small businesses and their employees, without which our knowledge of the book business would be incomplete, especially in the countryside.
Based on extensive archival research by our new network member Michael Wögerbauer, as well as Claire Madl and Petr Pisa, this volume deepens our knowledge of the business of the book in Bohemia during an important transition period – from the Theresian reforms and the emergence of public opinion and national identities to the Revolution of 1848; a time in which the printed word became increasingly widespread and important – for education, social engagement and the self-image of a broad strata of the population, but also as an important sector of the economy. An introduction and introductory texts on individual companies shed light on the breadth and variety of production and trade in Czech, German, Latin, French, Italian and Hebrew prints. A new standard work for a European region.
The authors of this book have also recently (2019) published a Czech book, and have offered to share their English-language summary titled “Toward a ‘well-functioning book market’: networks, firms and protagonists in the Bohemian book market (1749-1848)” with out network members and blog followers. The summary can be downloaded here.
Book History and Print Culture Network 