In the history of art, prehistoric art is all art produced in preliterate, prehistorical cultures beginning somewhere in very late geological history, and generally continuing until that culture either develops writing or other methods of record-keeping, or makes significant contact with another culture that has, and ...

The foundations of art history can be traced back thousands of years. Ancient art is often grouped together with pre-historic art (c. 40,000 BCE–600 CE) and roughly dates from around 6,000 or 3,000 BCE (depending on the source) to c. 400–600 CE.

The art of the ancient world reveals a tremendous amount to modern historians about the culture, values and beliefs of these early civilizations. At a time when few people could read and write, art was an important means of communication, and a critical way to record important events.