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Very few teachers of world history in the west pay sufficient attention to this event. A short fifty six years after the battle, Haram al-Rashid was able to send a complex brass clockwork as a gift to Charlemagne which was a HUGE wake-up call in Europe. They would struggle to make an equivalent device for centuries, and not start having any successful results until they too started to get access to paper via Moorish Spain in the 11th century. Even then, it would not be until well into the 15th century before papermaking would become sufficiently reliable in Europe that Gutenberg could do his thing and a culture of learning and knowledge transfer could really take-off. Paper is the critical foundation from which the modern world arose.

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Thank you for your insightful addition! I couldn't agree more with your perspective on the historical significance of these events and their impact on the development of the modern world.

Speaking of Gutenberg, I have studied the history of the last six centuries in Europe, beginning with him, who serves as a pivotal reference point for me. My writing will explore how his groundbreaking invention of the printing press revolutionized the dissemination of knowledge, particularly emphasizing its crucial role in facilitating the Protestant Reformation. Without the printing press, this significant religious movement might have taken a much longer time to unfold, if at all.

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Indeed, although I would call his invention movable type, since presses had been in use for printing using hand carved wooden blocks or plates for at least a century when he ;began tinkering. Also, there is a very interesting parallel story.

The Roman Cassiodorus understood the significance of the collapse of the papyrus trade because of the material's relatively short life in anything but arid conditions. So he worked with Benedict on the development of the Regula to get two hours of scriptoria work included. in the Benedictine monastic routine His idea was that the monks would then dutifully copy the written knowledge of the classical world forward using parchment. But, the supply of calf and sheep skins wasn't even close to what was needed, so the monks developed a technique for recycling old older books, re-cutting the hides, and cleansing the old ink off of them. They also gave copying preference to religious works, so gradually the old knowledge went with them. It was even the case that many of the brothers doing their daily scriptoria session were also illiterate and thus made a great many copying errors. It was this tragedy that laid the scene setting groundwork for Umberto Eco's novel "Il nome della roza" (The Name of the Rose), of which J.J. Annaud made a wonderful film.

Best of luck with your writing. I look forward to seeing more of it.

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Absolutely, I completely agree with your first point.

And thank you for the insight on Umberto Eco's "Il nome della roza" and its film adaptation. I wasn't aware of either, but I'm excited to watch the 1986 movie starring Sean Connery, which I found on YouTube. Your recommendation is greatly appreciated.

Have a nice weekend.

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