The printing press was introduced to the West in the Holy Roman Empire by Johannes Gutenberg, around 1440.Gutenberg, a goldsmith by profession, devised a hand mould to create metal movable type, and adapted screw presses and other existing technologies, to create a printing system.he invention of the printing press led to a huge increase of printing activities across Europe within only a few decades. From a single print shop in Mainz, Germany, printing had spread to no less than around 270 cities in Central, Western and Eastern Europe by the end of the 15th century.