Ancient art refers to the many types of art produced by the advanced cultures

of ancient societies with some form of writing, such as those of ancient China,

India, Mesopotamia, Persia, Palestine, Egypt, Greece, and Rome.

The art of pre-literate societies is normally referred to as Prehistoric art

although some Pre-Columbian cultures developed writing during the centuries

before the arrival of Europeans, on grounds of dating these are covered at

Pre-Columbian art and articles such as Maya art and Aztec art.

Egyptian Art

The Mask of Tutankhamun; c. 1327 BC

Ancient Egyptian art refers art produced in ancient Egypt between the 31st

century BC and the 4th century AD. It includes paintings, sculptures, drawings

on papyrus, faience, jewelry, ivories, architecture, and other art media. It is also

very conservative: the art style changed very little over time. Much of the

surviving art comes from tombs and monuments, giving more insight into the

Egyptians' belief of the afterlife. The Ancient Egyptian language had no word for

"art". Artworks served an essentially functional purpose that was bound with

religion and ideology. To render a subject in art was to give it permanence.

Hence, ancient Egyptian art portrayed an idealized, unrealistic view of the

world. There was no tradition of individual artistic expression since art served a

wider and cosmic purpose of maintaining order.

Greek Art

Hades abducting Persephone, 4th-century BC wall painting in the small Macedonian royal tomb at Vergina

Heracles and Athena, black-figure side of a belly amphora by the Andokides Painter, c. 520/510 BC

The Hellenistic Pergamon Altar: l to r Nereus, Doris, a Giant, Oceanus

Ancient Greek art stands out among that of other ancient cultures for its development of

naturalistic but idealized depictions of the human body, in which largely nude male figures

were generally the focus of innovation. The rate of stylistic development between about 750

and 300 BC was remarkable by ancient standards, and in surviving works is best seen in

sculpture.There were important innovations in painting, which have to be essentially

reconstructed due to the lack of original survivals of quality, other than the distinct field of

painted pottery.

Roman Art

Iphigenia in Aulis Wall painting from north wall of the House of the Tragic Poet, Pompeii

Fresco from the Villa of the Mysteries. Pompeii, 80 BC

Roman art refers to the visual arts made in Ancient Rome and in the territories of the

Roman Empire.Roman art includes architecture, painting, sculpture and mosaic work.

Luxury objects in metal-work, gem engraving, ivory carvings, and glass are sometimes

considered in modern terms to be minor forms of Roman art, although this would not

necessarily have been the case for contemporaries. Sculpture was perhaps considered as

the highest form of art by Romans, but figure painting was also very highly regarded.

The two forms have had very contrasting rates of survival, with a very large body of

sculpture surviving from about the 1st century BC onward, though very little from before,

but very little painting at all remains,and probably nothing that a contemporary would

have considered to be of the highest quality. Ancient Roman pottery was not a luxury

product, but a vast production of "fine wares" in terra sigillata were decorated with reliefs

that reflected the latest taste and provided a large group in society with stylish objects at

what was evidently an affordable price Roman coins were an important means of

propaganda, and have survived in enormous numbers.