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Much attention is paid nowadays to the remarkable increase in the speed of communication that is transforming our planet into a global village. In fact, international contacts across frontiers have been with us for centuries.Humans were wandering nomads before becoming traveling salespeople who built towns and countries. They were naturally interested in what was going on next door.The European invention of the printed book and the appearance of printers and publishers made an important contribution to the scientific, cultural and intellectual development of the continent. The Low Countries, in particular Flanders with Dirk Martens and Christoffel Plantin Moretus, played a key role in this revolution, the value of which we still recognise today. This important event was the subject of a colloquium organised on 9 June 2000 by the Centre for European Culture under the auspices of the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts.