Symbols – Books – Networks: From Cuneiform to Binary Code

The permanent exhibition of the German Museum of Books and Writing at the German National Library, “Signs – Books – Networks: from Cuneiform to Binary Code”, tells a brief media history of mankind along the lines of the three media innovations writing, printing and digital networks.

Whether tally stick, tattoo, or anatomy textbook; neon sign or coded writing; gravestone, novel, or love letter – for more than 5.000 years, humankind has recorded its knowledge of the world, its messages, and its fantasies using written symbols. Before the invention of writing, people passed information down orally from generation to generation. Writing, printing, and computers make it possible to store knowledge that can thus endure through the ages.

The exhibition invites visitors to explore earlier forms of communication, memory techniques, and writing systems, as well as historical book forms and modern recording technologies. It illuminates the groundbreaking achievements of Johannes Gutenberg, opens up new "worlds of reading," recounts instances of censorship, and presents masterpieces of medieval and modern book art. The rapid media developments at the beginning of the 20th century illustrate how the book lost its role as the dominant medium and was confronted by radio, television, and digital networks. At the end of the tour, the exhibition offers a playful glimpse into the future of media through six artist dioramas.