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Scholars cite a number of potential reasons for the dominance of woodblocks over moveable type in early modern Japan. Japanese calligraphic script, and the way it was integrated into the composition of a page alongside images, was more well-suited to woodblocks, as moveable type would have demanded a shift from long strings of connected ([[running script]]) calligraphy to separated, distinct characters which could be printed each from a separate type block. Woodblock printing also allowed for the inclusion, for example, of glosses such as what is today called ''furigana'' - small syllabic ''[[kana]]'' characters placed next to the logographic ''[[kanji]]'' to identify the reading. This provided not only the pronunciation in the strictest sense of the word - meaning, the sound, and thus the ability to read the word out loud - but also served, often, as an important indication of the identity or meaning of a phrase, since one generally knows one's mother tongue more natively or fluently by sound rather than by visuals. While moveable type works best with strict grids of characters, the inclusion of such glosses, at a smaller size, and nestled up next to the "main" columns of text, called for either a much more complex system of moveable type, or for woodblocks carved for a whole page - text, glosses, images, and all.

Scholars cite a number of potential reasons for the dominance of woodblocks over moveable type in early modern Japan. Japanese calligraphic script, and the way it was integrated into the composition of a page alongside images, was more well-suited to woodblocks, as moveable type would have demanded a shift from long strings of connected ([[running script]]) calligraphy to separated, distinct characters which could be printed each from a separate type block. Woodblock printing also allowed for the inclusion, for example, of glosses such as what is today called ''furigana'' - small syllabic ''[[kana]]'' characters placed next to the logographic ''[[kanji]]'' to identify the reading. This provided not only the pronunciation in the strictest sense of the word - meaning, the sound, and thus the ability to read the word out loud - but also served, often, as an important indication of the identity or meaning of a phrase, since one generally knows one's mother tongue more natively or fluently by sound rather than by visuals. While moveable type works best with strict grids of characters, the inclusion of such glosses, at a smaller size, and nestled up next to the "main" columns of text, called for either a much more complex system of moveable type, or for woodblocks carved for a whole page - text, glosses, images, and all.

Woodblocks were also better suited to the production of multiple editions, as a publisher could simply hold onto the blocks for a given book and reprint new copies later, never having to take apart the stereotype (the formatted, laid-out type blocks for a given page) and reassemble it for each page, or each work, as one would have to with moveable type. Finally, a third reason given for the popularity of woodblocks, and for the explosion of publishing in early modern Japan using woodblocks, was the relatively inexpensive entry cost for starting a publishing business. Rather than investing in a press (or multiple presses) and a collection of thousands of type blocks for individual characters, an entrepreneur could simply deal with one set of blocks at a time, hiring professional artisans (e.g. block-carvers and printers), or doing the work himself. The Japanese process of woodblock printing, furthermore, did not require any heavy, expensive, or technologically complex printing press, but rather was done largely by hand, using a tool called a ''[[baren]]'' to rub a piece of paper on top of an inked block.  

Woodblocks were also better suited to the production of multiple editions, as a publisher could simply hold onto the blocks for a given book and reprint new copies later, never having to take apart the stereotype (the formatted, laid-out type blocks for a given page) and reassemble it for each page, or each work, as one would have to with moveable type. Finally, a third reason given for the popularity of woodblocks, and for the explosion of publishing in early modern Japan using woodblocks, was the relatively inexpensive entry cost for starting a publishing business. Rather than investing in a press (or multiple presses) and a collection of thousands of type blocks for individual characters, an entrepreneur could simply deal with one set of blocks at a time, hiring professional artisans (e.g. block-carvers and printers), or doing the work himself. The Japanese process of woodblock printing, furthermore, did not require any heavy, expensive, or technologically complex printing press, but rather was done largely by hand, using a tool called a ''[[baren]]'', made from [[lacquer]]ed disks covered in a thin sheet of bamboo,<ref>"Carving tools and baren for printing," Gallery labels at Santa Barbara Museum of Art, September 2012.</ref> to rub a piece of paper on top of an inked block.  

The earliest printed works, such as the ''hyakumantô darani'', were printed on a paper made from hemp (J: ''asa''); however, in the Tokugawa period, paper made from ''[[kozo|kôzô]]'', that is, fibers from a plant called the "paper mulberry," became the most commonly used, along with paper made from similar plants known as ''[[mitsumata]]'' and ''[[gampi]]''. Each of these differ somewhat in their qualities, with ''gampi'' being a little darker, browner, in color; sometimes paper was recycled, with the ink residue from its previous usage turning the paper grey. Bamboo paper (J: ''tôshi'', ''gasenshi'') was also sometimes used.<ref>Keyes, 23.</ref> ''Kôzô'', however, overall, tends to be quite resilient, and soft and flexible, bending rather than creasing or breaking, and yellowing & growing brittle to a far lesser extent than modern/Western forms of wood pulp paper.

The earliest printed works, such as the ''hyakumantô darani'', were printed on a paper made from hemp (J: ''asa''); however, in the Tokugawa period, paper made from ''[[kozo|kôzô]]'', that is, fibers from a plant called the "paper mulberry," became the most commonly used, along with paper made from similar plants known as ''[[mitsumata]]'' and ''[[gampi]]''. Each of these differ somewhat in their qualities, with ''gampi'' being a little darker, browner, in color; sometimes paper was recycled, with the ink residue from its previous usage turning the paper grey. Bamboo paper (J: ''tôshi'', ''gasenshi'') was also sometimes used.<ref>Keyes, 23.</ref> ''Kôzô'', however, overall, tends to be quite resilient, and soft and flexible, bending rather than creasing or breaking, and yellowing & growing brittle to a far lesser extent than modern/Western forms of wood pulp paper.