College of DuPage Library

Prehistoric and Mesopotamian

Revised art guide in progress by Dominican University / COD practicum student Kathleen Gomez - sp 2016

Prehistoric art is that which was created in a civilization before the start of written records, or before encountering a culture that has developed writing, so that important events become documented. This can cause some discrepancy in the dating of prehistoric art, especially depending on the region. Recognized periods of prehistoric art include the Lower, Middle, and Upper Paleolithic periods, the Stone Age, the Neolithic period, the Bronze Age, and the Iron Age. Art of this period includes cave art, small fertility objects, pottery, and tools.

Mesopotamia, the land between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers (modern day Iraq and northeastern Syria), is sometimes referred to as the "Cradle of Civilization," rivaling ancient Egypt in size and scope. Assyrians, Babylonians, and Sumerians populated the region. The oldest written records date back to the Mesopotamian civilization. Art of this period includes statues, cylinder seals, pottery, and steles.

Art Guide Home

  1. Reference Books
  2. Circulating Books
  3. Databases and Websites

Reference Books

Confused about your topic, or not sure where to begin? Start here! Reference books are written to give you a good general overview of a topic. Print reference works are for in-library use only; ebooks can be viewed on and off campus if you have a current COD library card. The reference section is on the first floor of the library, behind the staircase. You can use the catalog or Reference Universe to find both print and electronic reference books.

Prehistoric

  • 30,000 Years of Art - N5300 .A14 2015
    • This little book is a huge timeline of art, from prehistory to contemporary! Each page contains a color photo of an artwork, the bibliographic information, and a short article. Each entry is color coded on the bottom edge of the page depending on the continent the work originated from. There is a smaller timeline of just text at the end, before the index.
    • See pgs 4-27
  • Encyclopedia of Archaeology: The Great Archaeologists - CC110 .E54 1999
    • An encyclopedia containing nothing but biographies on famous archaeologists, in chronological order. Features photos, a bibliography, and an index.
    • See "Art, prehistoric" in index
  • Grove Dictionary of Art - N31 .D5 1996
    • This is an older resource, but one of the most comprehensive art resources there is. The articles and biographies are a little longer, and features black and white photos and illustrations, maps, and an index. Also part of Oxford Art Online!
    • See “Prehistoric Art” Volume 25, pgs 467-8
    • See “Prehistoric Europe” Volume 25, pgs 468-548
  • Icons of Beauty: Art, Culture, and the Image of Women - N7630 .M25 2010
    • Historical record of how women are treated and portrayed in art throughout the centuries. Good long articles with great cross-indexing cover the history and method of works discussed, and related works. Features a table of contents in both volumes; black and white and color photos; bibliography; and index.
    • See Volume 1, Chapter 1: “The Beauty of Life in Form and Meaning: Woman from Millendorf (c. 25,000-22,000 BCE)”
  • The Oxford Companion to Archaeology - CC70 .O96 1996
    • Oxford is one of the premier publishers for art and architecture. Entries here range in topic from archaeology terms and methods to biographies of important archaeologists to essays about our ancestor's lives and culture. Also available in e-book.
    • See "art - Paleolithic," "cave art - Paleolithic," and "rock art - Paleolithic" in the index

Mesopotamian

  • 30,000 Years of Art - N5300 .A14 2015
    • This little book is a huge timeline of art, from prehistory to contemporary! Each page contains a color photo of an artwork, the bibliographic information, and a short article. Each entry is color coded on the bottom edge of the page depending on the continent it originated from. There is a smaller timeline of just text at the end, before the index.
    • See pgs 30, 35, 78, 82
  • Grove Dictionary of Art - N31 .D5 1996
    • This is an older resource, but one of the most comprehensive art resources there is. The articles and biographies are a little longer, and features black and white photos and illustrations, maps, and an index. Also part of Oxford Art Online!
    • See “Mesopotamia” Volume 21, pgs 266-310
  • The Oxford Companion to Archaeology - CC70 .O96 1996
    • Oxford is one of the premier publishers for art and architecture. Entries here range in topic from archaeology terms and methods to biographies of important archaeologists to essays about our ancestor's lives and culture. Also available in e-book.
    • See "Mesopotamia" in the index.
  • Oxford Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture - NA31 .C864 2006
    • Oxford is one of the premier publishers for art and architecture. This dictionary contains short, concise entries on architects as well as architectural terms and periods. Features black and white photos and illustrations and a bibliography after each entry.
    • See "Assyrian architecture" pg 49
    • See "Babylonian architecture" pg 54
    • See "Sumerian architecture" pg 753

Circulating Books

These are books you can check out! They can get more specific than reference books and are located on the second floor of the library. You can search the catalog before going up or click the box below to see the call numbers for art books so you can browse the shelves. If you find a book while searching that looks awesome but that we don't own, you can submit an inter-library loan request through I-Share and another library will send you the book for free! You will need a COD library card to check books out.

Click Here to See Call Number Ranges

Ask a Library staff member to show you where the "N" and "T" books are located.

N - general works of art
NA - works on architecture
NB - sculpting
NC - drawing
ND - painting
NE - print media
NK - decorative arts & ceramics
NX - special topics in art
TR - photography


Prehistoric

  • Art Past, Art Present - N5300 .W64 1997
    • A world look at art in chronological order from ancient to publication in 1997. The chapters are short, basically an overview of each art period, with a timeline at the end of each chapter. Features a table of contents; black and white and color photos and maps; bibliography; index; and glossary.
  • Cambridge Illustrated History of Prehistoric Art - N5310 .B34 1998
    • Contains information mostly about cave paintings: the discovery, interpretations, and science of dating them. It also contains some information about objects and body art, which is pretty cool! Includes a table of contents, glossary, index, and color photos.
  • Prehistoric Art: The Symbolic Journey of Mankind - N5310 .W48 2003
    • A little more of an anthropological look at prehistoric caves and objects around the world. Paragraph headings throughout the chapters make this a particularly light read. Includes table of contents, charts, maps, color photos, glossary, bibliography, and index.
  • Sculpture of the World: A History - NB60 .C55 1968
    • A chronological view of sculpture from primitive and ancient to the 1960’s. Features a table of contents; black and white photos and maps; bibliography; and index.
  • World Rock Art - N5310 .C5813 2002
    • Read about rock art found around the world and the discovery, interpretations, and preservation of the images. Includes a table of contents, bibliography, and color photos.

Mesopotamian

  • Ancient Near Eastern Art - N5345 .C69 1995
    • A chronology of ancient art with a big timeline at the end. Includes a table of contents, black and white and color photos, maps, timeline, bibliography, and index.
  • Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus - N5330 .A68 2003
    • Exhibition catalog of ancient art held at the Met in summer of 2003. In addition to the artwork, there are lots of articles written by scholars on different art and civilizations and ways of life. Includes table of contents, color photos, bibliography, and index.
  • Art Past, Art Present - N5300 .W64 1997
    • A world look at art in chronological order from ancient to publication in 1997. The chapters are short, basically an overview of each art period, with a timeline at the end of each chapter. Features a table of contents; black and white and color photos and maps; bibliography; index; and glossary.
  • Sculpture of the World: A History - NB60 .C55 1968
    • A chronological view of sculpture from primitive and ancient to the 1960’s. Features a table of contents; black and white photos and maps; bibliography; and index.
  • Sumer: The Dawn of Art - N5370 .P343
    • Outlines different periods in Sumer and gives art and history for each. There are timelines at the end of each chapter with important dates, events, and rulers. Includes table of contents, black and white and color photos, maps, and diagrams, bibliography, and a combined glossary/index.

Databases and Websites

All these are web resources that the COD library has subscribed to or that have been gathered from the internet that are helpful for this topic!

Prehistoric

Databases - Best Bets

Below are library databases where you can access journal articles and other content. Most of these may be accessed from off-campus, but you must have a COD library card to do so.

Some suggested keywords and subject terms to use when searching for articles on this subject are:
- "prehistoric art"
- "paleolithic art"
- "primitive art"
- "rock paintings"

  • Academic OneFile
    • Contains nearly 13,000 indexed journals, newspapers, and magazines, most peer reviewed and many full-text. The research is very current, not much historical content, but there are a wide range of topics covered. There's a really cool topic finder on the search results page, which gives you keywords related to your search! You have the option to save, download, or email the text or MP3 of the article, and you can make a free account to highlight and make notes on the article within the database.
  • Academic Search Complete
    • Contains over 9000 journals, about 7000 of which are full-text. Some journals go back to 1880’s so you can get historical and recent publications on any given topic. There are plenty of options to narrow your search and to save and cite your article.
  • Art & Architecture Complete
    • Similar to Academic Search Complete except it contains only art-specific publications! If you're looking for the subject browsing function, it's titled Thesaurus.
  • Artstor
    • Find images of artworks that can be used in papers and presentations! You can search or browse by geography, media, or museum/gallery collections. Make a free account to save, organize, cite, or export images. Take a look through their subject guides to get ideas for your next project! See the Artstor Quick Start Guide for tips on using this resource.
  • Oxford Art Online
    • An art major's best friend. This database includes the full text of Grove Art Online, the Oxford Companion to Western Art, the Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, and The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms. Your one-stop shop for scholarly articles, biographies, and definitions of all things art-related.

Websites

These resources were compiled from the internet. No library card required!

  • Bradshaw Foundation’s Tanum Rock Art Museum
    • All kinds of information about rock art around the world, complete with pictures, essays, and videos!
  • Google Art Project
    • The Google Art Project is the result of a partnership with museums and galleries to put the art online for free! You can search and browse by museum, collection, artist, or artwork. If you have a Google account, you can create your own "gallery" so you can save and categorize your favorite artwork.
  • Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History - Prehistoric Art
    • Links to the "keyword" feature of the Timeline, which lists all the essays, artworks, and timeline with the "Prehistoric Art" tag. Curated by the Met.
  • Kemerovo State University, Russia
    • Good introductory essays, links to different periods, cave art sites, and portable objects with pictures. Make sure to have your browser translator on, it can go back to Russian sometimes.

Mesopotamian

Databases - Best Bets

Below are library databases where you can access journal articles and other content. Most of these may be accessed from off-campus, but you must have a COD library card to do so.

Some suggested keywords and subject terms to use when searching for articles on this subject are:
- "Mesopotamia"
- "Mesopotamian antiquities"
- "Iraqi art"

  • Academic OneFile
    • Contains nearly 13,000 indexed journals, newspapers, and magazines, most peer reviewed and many full-text. The research is very current, not much historical content, but there are a wide range of topics covered. There's a really cool topic finder on the search results page, which gives you keywords related to your search! You have the option to save, download, or email the text or MP3 of the article, and you can make a free account to highlight and make notes on the article within the database.
  • Academic Search Complete
    • Contains over 9000 journals, about 7000 of which are full-text. Some journals go back to 1880’s so you can get historical and recent publications on any given topic. There are plenty of options to narrow your search and to save and cite your article.
  • Art & Architecture Complete
    • Similar to Academic Search Complete except it contains only art-specific publications! If you're looking for the subject browsing function, it's titled Thesaurus.
  • Artstor
    • Find images of artworks that can be used in papers and presentations! You can search or browse by geography, media, or museum/gallery collections. Make a free account to save, organize, cite, or export images. Take a look through their subject guides to get ideas for your next project! See the Artstor Quick Start Guide for tips on using this resource.
  • Oxford Art Online
    • An art major's best friend. This database includes the full text of Grove Art Online, the Oxford Companion to Western Art, the Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, and The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms. Your one-stop shop for scholarly articles, biographies, and definitions of all things art-related.

Websites

These resources were compiled from the internet. No library card required!