Introduction African art history can be regarded as foundational, being the cradle of human civilization. Therefore, African art played a crucial role in developing cultural and historic landscape of the entire world. The origins of African culture dates back to the prehistoric times, starting from representation sculptures and rock art. The African studies reveal the earliest sculpture art that was discovered in Nigeria. These artifacts date back to 500 BC. The scarcity of archeological research restrains the knowledge of antiquity of artistic forms on the continent ( Looking at and Seeing African Art n. d.). At the same time, archeological discoveries point to a wide variety of raw materials that have contributed to time disintegration. Apart from the abundance of historic evidence, African history can be proud of the contributions that the Egyptian civilization contributed to its artistic heritage. Purpose of the Research Because the African art is mostly premised on representing visual culture of the continent, the main purpose of the research consists in defining the early forms of African art, main materials used, major influences, and the main themes explored within the established context. It is also purposeful to explore the role of the most ancient culture on the development of new artistic forms. Main Discussion Establishing the Temporal Frames of Early African Art The first evidence pointing to the rise of African art refers to the development of Nok Culture shaping the ancient Civilization between 500 BC – 200 AD. Discovered in 1928, the examined artwork represents a mixed style that employed a range of iron –utilizing societies of diverse culture, undermining the claim that Nok people were distinguished by one feature. The archeologists also state that the Nok Terracotta figurines originate from the small village located in sub-Saharan region. The historic evidence proves that the refined style of this culture is represented by the image of dignitary figurine (Nok Culture n. p.). In the Picture 1, it is possible to see the earliest sculpture, the Terracotta Nok Head dating back to 500 BC. Although the sculpture refers to ancient civilization developments, evidence of much early artifacts exists. This is of particular concern to the oldest rock images left in Namibia caves nearly 24,000-27,000 years ago (Thebe 18). Other than that, the expert archeologists note that the African rock art can refer to much more ancient times. In order to get a better idea of the historic period, it is purposeful to consider various themes, forms, and influences represented in the rock art. Major Themes Explored Among the Artifacts Rock Art The history of rock engraving and painting art is ambiguous due to the scarcity of archeological findings. Artworks on rock walls are quite vulnerable and, therefore, few rock paintings preserved up to our modern times (The Metropolitan Museum of Art n. p.). Despite this, the slabs of rocks with historic painting were found in Huns Mountains of Namibia, in the Apollo 11 Cave. The rock stones were pained in ocher, white, and charcoal (The Metropolitan Museum of Art n. p.). Incised stones were also discovered at the Wonderwerk Cave in the Northern Cape, in South Africa. The findings suggest that the engravings refer to the ancient history of the continent. As it ha