Smarthistory – Just published

From the elements of art to the great goddess Durga — Smarthistory is adding new content every week.

Prehistoric to contemporary

videos + essays

Takaezu's ceramics reflect her belief that art should have "mystery, an unsaid quality; it contains a spirit and is alive."

This ancient monument is maximally decorated with images of Celtic symbols, Greek battles, and Roman cityscapes.

Combining Indigenous and European conventions, the Virgin of Pomata was one of the most popular images in the colonial Andes.

Decorated with two rings of Arabic script, this dish highlights the central role of the written word Islamic art.

Sabri’s work mobilized art’s potent expressive capacity in acts of solidarity with those who were not as fortunate or visible.

This portrait of Napoleon III’s favorite horse tells an important story of art theft and repatriation.

In this landscape of the town Pontoise, Pissarro emphasizes the modest people that make up its rural community.

Abelardo Morell is known for artworks that employ the language of photography to conjure visual surprise and wonder.

Throughout South Asia, the processes of textile-making are suffused with spiritualism.

Under the Abbasids, Baghdad was the capital of the Islamic world and a center of exchange between Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Does the abstraction of form and faraway look in this colossal portrait hint at the growth of Christianity in Rome?

It’s Three Kings Day in Havana, and men and women have gathered for a celebration rooted in both Catholic and West African traditions.