The Story of Art, by E. H. Gombrich, is a survey of the history of art from ancient times to the modern era. First published in 1950 by Phaidon, the book is widely regarded both as a seminal work of criticism and as one of the most accessible introductions to the visual arts. It was originally intended for younger readers. Over eight million copies have been sold, and it has been translated into more than 30 languages. As of 2022, The Story of Art is in its 16th edition. Background Art historian Ernst Gombrich had experience with book production before The Story of Art. He collaborated with Ernst Kris on an unpublished book on the history of caricature and published his first book on the history of the world for children in 1936. That same year, Gombrich relocated to London from Vienna for a job synthesizing the late Aby Warburg’s notes for publication at the Warburg Institute. However, with the rise of the Second World War, Gombrich was sent to work as a broadcast translator at a BBC listening post in Evesham. There, he met Béla Horovitz, founder of Phaidon Press, who was lacking materials to publish due to the war and was in search of new material. Gombrich, having already written a few chapters of an art history book for children while in Vienna, offered the work and was given an advance for the work that became The Story of Art, first published by Phaidon in 1950. Summary The book is divided into a preface, introduction, and 27 chapters that each deal with art within a defined time period and geographical context. A 28th chapter summarizes the latest developments in visual arts. The chapters in the 15th edition are listed as follows: "Strange beginnings: Prehistoric and primitive peoples; Ancient America" "Art for eternity: Egypt, Mesopotamia, Crete" "The great awakening: Greece, seventh to fifth century BC" "The realm of beauty: Greece and the Greek world, fourth century BC to first century AD" "World conquerors: Romans, Buddhists, Jews and Christians, first to fourth century AD" "A parting of ways: Rome and Byzantium, fifth to thirteenth century" "Looking eastwards: Islam, China, second to thirteenth century" "Western art in the melting pot: Europe, sixth to eleventh century" "The Church militant: The twelfth century" "The Church triumphant: The thirteenth century" "Courtiers and burghers: The fourteenth century" "The conquest of reality: The early fifteenth century"