ABSTRACT

History People have been communicating through visual imagery for

centuries. Before there were written words, there were pictographs,

cave paintings and hieroglyphics. Archeological discoveries suggest

that symbolic, iconic images used by the ancient Egyptians as a

form of written communication represent the oldest forms of writ-

ing. Ancient cultures in China, Mesopotamia and the Americas also

first used similar iconic systems before evolving native alphabets

and modern written language systems.