From Cave Paintings to the Internet A Chronological and Thematic Database on the History of Information and Media Book Illustration Outline

The Oldest Surviving Illustrated Papyrus Roll
(Circa 1,980 BCE)

One of the Oldest and Most Complete Diagrams from Euclid
(75 CE – 125 CE)

The Romance Papyrus
(Circa 100 CE – 200 CE)

One of the Few Scraps of Classical Literary Illustration on Papyrus
(Circa 250 CE)

The Most Richly Illustrated Greek Papyrus
(Circa 350 CE)

The Earliest Dated Codex with Full-Page Illustrations
(354 CE)

The Oldest Surviving Illustrated Biblical Manuscript
(Circa 398 CE)

The Charioteer Papyrus
(Circa 400 CE)

Herald of Christianity and Magus
(Circa 400 CE)

"The Earliest Evidence for Tooling on a Leather Bookbinding"
(Circa 400 CE)

The Oldest Extant Book Illustrations of Plants
(Circa 400 CE)

Fragments of a Fifth or Sixth Century Codex
(Circa 450 CE – 550)

One of Few Surviving "Scientific" Manuscripts from Late Antiquity
(Circa 450 CE – 550)

Possibly the Earliest Surviving Illuminated Christian Manuscripts
(Circa 500 CE – 650)

Probably the Most Beautiful of the Earliest Surviving Scientific Codices
(Circa 512)

The Herbal of Pseudo-Apuleius
(Circa 550 – 625)

One of the Oldest Surviving Illuminated Manuscripts of the New Testament
(Circa 555)

The Naples Dioscorides
(Circa 625)

The Earliest Surviving Complete Bible in the Latin Vulgate, and One of the Earliest Surviving Images of Bookbindings and a Bookcase
(Circa 685)

The Earliest Surviving Dated Complete Printed Book
(May 11, 868)

The Oldest Surviving Illustrated Manuscript in Arabic
(1009 – 1010)

The Hunterian Psalter
(Circa 1170)

Beginnings of an Active Book Trade Outside of Monasteries
(Circa 1200)

The Largest Extant Medieval Manuscript- The Devil's Bible
(1229)

The Oldest Surviving Ashkenazi Illuminated Manuscript
(Circa 1300)

Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, and Horticulture
(Circa 1304 – 1309)

The Oldest Sephardic Haggadah
(Circa 1350)

One of the Earliest Surviving Italian Manuscripts on Technology and War Machines
(Circa 1420)

An Intermediate Form between a Collection of Prints and a Blockbook
(Circa 1460 – 1465)

Integrating Illustrations into the Printed Text
(Circa 1460 – 1490)

The First Book Printed in German and the First Dated Book with Woodcuts
(February 14, 1461)

The First Combination of Text and Illustrations in One Printing Forme
(1462 – 1463)

The First Atlas of Pediatric Surgery
(1465)

The Earliest Illustrated Printed Book Published in Italy
(December 31, 1467)

The First Printed Book on Technology with the First Woodcuts on a Scientific or Technological Subject
(1472)

The First Map Included in a Printed Book
(November 19, 1472)

The First Illustrated Printed Book on Natural History
(October 30, 1475)

The First Book with Engraved Maps
(1477)

The Earliest Portrait of an Author in a Printed Book
(August 28, 1479)

The First Printed Herbal with Illustrations and Probably the First Series of Illustrations on a Scientific Subject
(Circa 1481 – 1482)

The Most Famous Textbook Ever Published
(May 25, 1482)

The First Illustrated Travel Book: An International Bestseller
(February 11, 1486)

The First Medical Book with Anatomical Illustrations
(July 26, 1491)

The Nuremberg Chronicle
(July 12 – December 1493)

The "Book Fool"
(February 11, 1494)

The First English Book Printed on Paper Made in England
(1495 – 1496)

Printing Presses are Established in 282 Cities
(December 1500)

The First Illustrated Edition of Vitruvius
(May 22, 1511)

The First Work Since the Time of Galen to Show Original Anatomical Information Based upon Personal Investigation and Observation
(1521)

Interpreting Roman Architecture in the Language of the Renaissance
(July 15, 1521)

A Condensation of his Commentaria
(1522)

First Accurate, Detailed Woodcuts of Plants Taken Directly from Nature
(1530 – 1536)

The First Significant Book on the Anatomy of the Head
(1536 – 1537)

With Self-Portraits of the Artists
(1542)

Unprecedented Blending of Scientific Exposition, Art and Typography
(June 1543)

A Condensation or Road-Map to the Fabrica
(June 1543)

Erotic Images Made Acceptable by their Adaptation for Medical Purposes
(1545)

Renaissance Surgery and Graphic Arts
(1545)

The First Edition of Vesalius Published in England
(October 1545 – 1553)

Who Discovered the Pulmonary Circulation?
(1559)

Classic of Mannerist Book Illustration and Printing
(June 28, 1560)

The Eustachian Tube and Many Other Discoveries
(1563 – 1564)

The First Medical Book Printed in the Western Hemisphere with the Earliest Illustrations of Plants Printed in the Western Hemisphere
(1570)

One of the First Physicians to Draw the Illustrations for his Own Publications
(1572 – 1573)

Renaissance Information Retrieval Device
(1588)

Moving the Obelisk
(1590)

The First Book Devoted Exclusively to the Structure of an Animal Other than Man
(1598)

Images of Revolutionary Discoveries Concerning the Universe
(March 1610)

Graphic Portrayal of the Hitherto Unknown Microcosm
(1665)

Anatomy in the Style of Dutch Still-Life Painting
(1685)

Baroque Anatomy and Plagiarism
(1698)

The Structural Relationships between the Body of Man and the Anthropoid Ape
(1699)

Reflecting Surrealism Centuries Before Surrealism Became Fashionable
(1701 – 1725)

The First Natural History of North American Flora and Fauna
(1729 – 1747)

The Cool, Elegant Aesthetic of Anatomy
(1747)

Mechanical and Industrial Arts of 18th Century France
(1749 – 1814)

The Central Enterprise of the French Enlightenment
(1751 – 1780)

The First Book on Western Medicine and Science Published in Japanese
(1774)

Anatomy for Artists including Fantastical Elements
(1779)

Foundation of Statistical Graphics: the Line Chart and Bar Chart
(1785 – 1786)

Invention of Lithography
(1796)

Invention of the Pie Chart
(1801)

The First Book of Printed Reproductions of Photographs
(1856)

The First Book to Include a Photograph of its Author
(1857)

The First Significant Series of Illustrations in Daily Newspaper
(June 30, 1875)

The First Book on Computer Graphics
(1965)