This survey of Western art from ancient Egypt to Picasso looks at visual art in a completely new and imaginative way. The lively and penetrating obser-vations will inspire and enthuse the novice, while breathing new life into the thinking of art critics and historians. Gottfried Richter concerns himself broadly with architecture, sculpture, and painting--as well as mythology and legend--in pre-senting the creations of artist and architect as an expression of the evolution of human consciousness. In vivid images he offers the reader interpretive keys to under-stand this process in all areas of art history. With many examples the author illustrates how human life has undergone a qualitative transfor-mation as humanity has gradually freed itself from a life determined by spiritual guidance in order to take hold of the sensory world and experience free individuality. C O N T E N T S Preface by Konrad Oberhuber Introduction Translator's Comments 1. On the Meaning of History 2. The Sun-Word: The Nature of Egyptian Art 3. The Death of Osiris: The History of Egyptian Art 4. The Message of Man: The Mission of Greece 5. The Triumphal Arch 6. The Cathedral: On the History of Medieval Art 7. The Sunrise: Art at the Dawn of the New Age 8. The Mystery of the Earth: From the Baroque to Modern Times Appendix