As groundbreaking as Dante's Inferno was as a highly personal exploration of human nature and the consequences of sin, the author most certainly had a wealth of tradition to draw upon, and from extraordinary sources. Dante's epic poem is unique, certainly in terms of individual voice, experience, and perspective. At...

Of the three major ancient cultures, Egypt, Greece, and Rome, it is difficult to choose which one had the greatest influence on Western art. This is largely because Western culture developed from a blending of the ancient cultures over time. The influence of all three of these cultures can be...

Ancient Egyptian culture was rich in art forms. For instance, the Old Kingdom had very dynamic art forms. The works of architects, masons and sculptors were highly technical and resulted in several monumental structures. Egyptian sculptors created some of the earliest forms of human portraits by using copper, wood and...

Assignment Reading: Maya-The Yaxchilan Lintels The lintels above the doorways of Yaxchilan in Mexico reveal a great deal about life in the region during the Classical Period within the Mayan civilization. Many of the carved lintels date from about the mid-eighth century CE and were commissioned by the city’s leaders....

I think that Ancient Rome had the greatest influence in the development of Western Art. Most of the images that we associate with art stem from the Renaissance and the Renaissance was a revival of Ancient Roman ideas, art and architecture. One of the most famous paintings in the western...