Movable type was developed in China centuries before Johannes Gutenberg's work in Europe. Bi Sheng, a Chinese artisan, is credited with its invention around the 11th century during the Song Dynasty. Bi Sheng's type was crafted from baked clay, each character individually created and used for typesetting. However, this early version faced challenges due to the fragility of the clay types, limiting its widespread use and adoption.

Johannes Gutenberg's innovations in the 15th century printing press built upon the foundation laid by earlier Chinese printing methods, introducing crucial advancements that enhanced efficiency, quality, and versatility. Gutenberg's system used durable and reusable metal type, allowing for quicker typesetting and longer-lasting characters, a mechanical press that applied even pressure to the inked type, and a durable oil-based ink.

Incunabula, a term derived from the Latin "incunabula" meaning "swaddling clothes" refers to books printed before 1501. A frequent assumption is that incunabula are all theological, but they often cover a range of subjects, even the antecedents of subjects that we consider very modern, such as computing. Pacioli’s Summa de arithmetica, for example, contains the antecedents of symbolic algebra, leading to coding and the advent of the modern computer.

Printers' marks in incunabula often featured various symbols, images, and sometimes letters or initials associated with the printing press. In this passage of the Sophologium printed in 1470, Adolf Rusch, a prominent printer from Strasbourg in the late 15th century, used a distinctive printer's mark that included a majuscule "R" within the text his press produced.