"The 'History of Art' is a vast mosaic that spans from prehistory to the early years of our century.

The absolute innovation of this project by Eli Four, which began in 1909, was completed in 1927 and has been revised several times, was that it introduced a new genre, which is now considered essential and is particularly popular: the art book, that is, where every comment can be compared to the works themselves.

Where the confrontation and analogy of images justify the boldness of the approach, which is often unprecedented. A completely new endeavor for the time, which no one, except Marlaux, has reached or surpassed to this day.

(...) [Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]