Images

The Ness of Brodgar excavation site in Stenness, Orkney, Scotland. The site is dated to 3500 BCE and so predates both Stonehenge and the Pyramids at Giza. It was discovered in 2002 and excavations are ongoing.

A mask of jadeite from the Olmec civilization of the Gulf coast, Mesoamerica, 900-500 BCE. Provenance: Rio Pesquero, Mexico. (Dallas Museum of Art)

A ceramic storage jar from the Anasazi civilization of northern America. The jar displays the typical geometric black on red designs of the Wingate Style, 1125-1200 CE. (Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, USA).

A basalt colossal head from the Olmec civilization of Mesoamerica. Provenance: Veracruz, Mexico, 1200-900 BCE. The significance of the heads is disputed but as no two heads are alike and each headdress has distinctive designs they may represent...

A life-size ceramic 'baby' figurine from the Olmec civilization of Mexico, Mesoamerica, 12th-9th century BCE. The significance of these figures, often depicting infantile gestures, is not clear. They may represent deities or royalty. Provenance...

A Celtic parade helmet in bronze and iron covered in gold with coral inlay, c. 350 BCE. Found buried in a cave in Agris, western France. It is a fine example of the use of vegetal motifs in ancient Celtic art. (Bernisches Historisches Museum...

A marble statue of the pan-Hellenic hero Perseus wearing the cap of Hades (which rendered the wearer invisible) and holding the head of the Gorgon Medusa. (By Antonio Canova, 1804-6 CE, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York).

This statue was uncovered during excavations in 1877 at the Temple of Hera at Olympia. The statue captures the myth where Hermes takes the baby Dionysos to the Nymphs, where on his way he rests upon a tree trunk, having thrown his cloak over...

A 28cm high, marble harp player from the Cycladic islands, 2700-2300 BCE. It is one of the earliest representations of a musician from the Bronze Age Aegean. (J.Paul Getty museum, Malibu, USA).

A marble head from a large Cycladic figure sculpture, 2600-2500 BCE. The head shows traces of pigment on the forehead - probably a diadem - and the nose and cheeks. (J.Paul Getty Museum, Malibu, USA).