Greece 1193

     In 1976 Greece issued a stamp to commemorate the first book printed in Greek. The inscription on the stamp ΠΕΝΤΑΚΟΣΙΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΑ ΑΠΟ ΕΚΔΟΣΗ ΤΟΝ ΠΡΩΤΟΝ ΕΛΛΗΝΙΚΟΝ ΒΙΒΛΙΟΝ, is “500th anniversary of the printing of the first book in Greek.”
     The stamp shows a picture of the book, the Επιτομή των oκτώ του λόγου μερών (Summary of the Eight Parts of Speech), by Constantine Lascaris (1434-1501). The type face, resembling the cursive Greek handwriting of the time, was carved by Dimitrios Damilas, a native of Crete. The book was printed in 1476 in Milan by Dionysius Paravisinus.