A Brief Picture Book History

Let’s take a look at the history of picture books, which is as rich and colourful as the stories these books tell. The origins of picture books are rooted in the influence of medieval illuminated manuscripts and John’s Locke’s educational ideals in the 17th century. From the first picture book in 1658 to the initial commercial availability of picture books in the 18th century, they have grown from hand-crafted masterpieces for the elite into a global medium beloved by children and adults alike. Each era brought innovations—from the intricate toy books of the Victorian age to the outstanding books that won Newbery and Caldecott medals and the technological advancements of the 21st century.

This timeline reveals how picture books have not only entertained but also educated, shaped cultures, and connected generations. Let’s explore the milestones that have defined this history, including the emergence of award-winning illustrations, the rise of digital interactivity, and the enduring charm of wordless storytelling.

We will shed light to the history of picture books and how they have evolved into the accessible art form we know today through these topics:

• A Picture Book Timeline
  • Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts (476 CE – 1400s)
  • What May Be the First Children’s Picture Book (1658)
  • John Locke’s Influence (1693)
  • The First Commercial Market for Children’s Books (18th Century)
  • The Establishment of the Newbery Medal (1922)
  • The Establishment of the Caldecott Medal (1938)
  • The Launch of the Little Golden Books Series (1942)
  • Post World War II
  • 1960s -1970s
  • 2000s and Onwards
    • The Rise of Digital Publishing
    • Modern Printing Techniques
• BONUS SECTION: A Brief History of Wordless Picture Books

A Picture Book Timeline

Medieval Illuminated Manuscripts (476 CE – 1400s)

The roots of picture books can be traced back in ancient history to medieval illuminated manuscripts, which were painstakingly written by hand. These manuscripts, often religious texts, were adorned with intricate illustrations by artists and ornate lettering. They are illuminated because the pages had gold leaf, which made the pages look lit up. These religious texts were often made by monks since monasteries used to serve as primary centres of learning before universities existed.

Besides religious texts, these monks also created created manuscripts commissioned by rulers and high-ranking church officials, which included historical records and works of Greek and Roman literature. Although primarily intended for adults, these manuscripts laid the groundwork for future illustrated books by demonstrating the power of combining text and imagery to enhance storytelling.

An example of a medieval illuminated manuscript is a Book of Hours, a beautifully decorated prayer book for personal use. Unlike other religious texts meant for clergy, anyone who could read could own one. For over 250 years, these books became bestsellers for their lovely illustrations and were seen as symbols of wealth. A Book of Hours included prayers, psalms, a calendar of saints’ days, and brief readings for specific times of the day.

A spread from a Book of Hours, originally published in 1524

What May Be the First Children’s Picture Book (1658)

Orbis Sensualium Pictus, translated as “Visible World in Pictures,” is considered the world’s first children’s picture book. The book that combined education and religion for children was published by Johann Amos Comenius of the Czech Republic, a theologian and education reformer, in 1658. The illustrations were done using the woodcut printing technique, where the artist carves the image on the surface of a block of wood.

Orbis Sesualium Pictus or “Visible World in Pictures, published in 1658, is considered the world’s first picture book.

John Locke’s Influence (1693)

John Locke, a child psychologist, pondered the types of books that would best match young people’s abilities and interests. In 1693, he published an influential book titled Some Thoughts Concerning Educationin London. He emphasised that a child is more likely to pay attention if learning feels like a game rather than a lecture. Locke believed that the perfect children’s book should be simple, enjoyable, and suitable for a child’s understanding. He also highlighted the importance of keeping stories brief, entertaining, and rewarding. They should also include illustrations, as pictures reinforce the story and words from a child’s perspective.

Title page of an 1880 printing edition of Some Thoughts Concerning Education

The First Commercial Market for Children’s Books (18th Century)

John Locke’s book inspired publisher John Newbery to focus on publishing books for young readers. Newbery’s move created the first commercial market for children’s books in the West. His small, attractive paperbacks quickly became popular with the growing middle-class English families and were soon copied or even pirated in North America. Newbery’s innovative approach combined engaging stories with moral lessons, setting the standard for children’s publishing. His published works included A Little Pretty Pocket-Book. Printed by Isaiah Thomas in 1787, the bookwas designed to educate and entertain two children named Master Tommy and Miss Polly. The book promised to teach children good behaviour. It also featured a little songbook aimed at introducing kids to the English alphabet in a fun and engaging way.

Page 29 of A Little Pretty Pocket-Book

Meanwhile, in the Edo period of Japan (1603–1867), a similar market for akahon, or “red-bound” picture books for young readers, emerged independently but for similar reasons. An example is The Bowl-Bearer Princess, Volume 1, published between 1700 to 1799. The story tells the life of Hachikazuki hime, a princess whose head is stuck with a bowl filled with treasures. The bowl was placed on her head by her mother when she was a little girl.

A spread from The Bowl-Bearer Princess. Volume 1

As the demand for children’s books grew in the 19th-century, fables, fairy tales, and nursery rhymes were introduced. “Toy books,” a popular form of Victorian picture books, became fashionable. Routledge was the biggest publisher of toy books, including masterpieces collaborated by engraver-printer Edmund Evans and artists Walter Crane and Randolph Caldecott.

The Frog Prince toy book illustrated by Walter Crane, originally published in 1874

The House That Jack Built, illustrated by Randolph Caldecott, originally published in 1878

During the turn-of-the-last-century, elegant editions of fairy tales and classic stories became popular gifts. As the middle class grew, artists began creating books with new features that appealed to children. For example, Lothar Meggendorfer from Germany was a leading innovator of pop-up books with rivets, levers, and interlocked parts. Today, pop-up books have 3D pages with tabs and flaps to lift and open.

Travels of Little Lord Thumb and His Man Damian, illustrated by Meggendorfer, Lothar (1890s)

The Establishment of the Newbery Medal (1922)

The Newbery Medal, established in 1922, is one of the most prestigious awards in children’s literature. Named after John Newbery, the medal honours authors who have made significant contributions to children’s literature. Awarded annually by the American Library Association, it recognises outstanding storytelling, celebrating books that captivate young readers and enrich their understanding of the world. The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon, a was awarded the first Newbery medal in American history. This books helped children in learning history, for instance the American revolution.

The Story of Mankind, originally published in 1921, a milestone in American history as the first picture book to be awarded with the Newbery medal

The Establishment of the Caldecott Medal (1938)

In 1938, the Caldecott Medal was introduced as a companion prize to the Newbery Medal by the American Library Association. The medal honours excellence in children’s book illustration and is named after the pioneering illustrator Randolph Caldecott. The award has celebrated a wide range of artistic styles and techniques, inspiring illustrators to push the boundaries of creativity and innovation in picture book design. The Caldecott Medal was first awarded in 1938 to Dorothy P. Lathrop for her illustrations in Animals of the Bible, which had text selected from the King James Bible by Helen Dean Fish.

Animals of the Bible, an American picture book which has text selected from the King James Bible by Helen Dean Fish and illustrated by Dorothy P. Lathrop

The Launch of the Little Golden Books Series (1942)

The launch of the Little Golden Books series in 1942 revolutionised the picture book industry by making high-quality children’s books affordable and accessible to a broader audience. Created by Simon & Schuster, the Artists and Writers Guild, and the Western Printing and Lithographing Company of Racine, Wisconsin, these books feature colourful illustrations and simple, engaging stories, appealing to both children ages 3 to 8 and parents. Initially available at bookstores and department stores, these books branched out to be sold in drugstores, five-and-dime stores, and supermarkets after World War II.

The series quickly became a staple for American families, introducing kids to beloved characters and timeless tales. The success of Little Golden Books demonstrated the widespread demand for affordable children’s literature, influencing publishers to produce more accessible picture books and expand the market for young readers.

Here Comes the Parade by Little Golden Books (1951)

Post World War II

After the first world war, American and European juvenile fiction continued to prosper. At the same time, Japanese consumers developed a demand for translated American picture books like Curious George and Make Way for Ducklings and British picture books such as The Tale of Peter Rabbit. These books influenced the style and techniques of postwar Japanese writers and illustrators and sparked a lasting impact on picture-book creation in Taiwan, South Korea, and eventually China by the new century.

During this time, picture book biographies also became more common. Prior to this, picture book biographies were rare because full-color printing was expensive and biographies were more text-focused,usually written in a moralistic, educational style rather than as engaging, illustrated narratives.

1960s -1970s

Children’s books started to shift from idealised stories to more realistic ones in the 1960s. These new stories portrayed children with complex emotions and behaviours. A famous example is Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are (1963). This book comforted young readers by acknowledging that their strong emotions and desires are a normal part of life, marking a new era of understanding in picture books.

Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

Popular picture books were translated in multiple languages to reach larger audiences, proving the universality of picture books. Among the famous ones are The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle (1969), Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham (1970), and We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury (1989).

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is a book told in a unique way by having illustrations of delicious food amusingly punched with caterpillar bite holes. It tells what could be seen as a true story of a caterpillar who voraciously ate from the time it hatched from an egg to becoming a beautiful butterfly. (1969)

Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham is helps kids learn a valuable lesson about welcoming others and accepting challenges gracefully. Mr. Gumpy welcomes children and a bunch of animals into his boat for a ride. Even when his passengers became rowdy, causing the boat to turn over, Mr. Gumpy leads the group back to shore and heads to his home for tea. (1970)

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury is a fun book filled with various rhyming sounds that tells the story of a father and his four kids’ journey as they encounter a grassy field, a river, a swamp, a forest, a snowstorm, and a cave to hunt for a bear. (1989)

In this period, the established picture book market that previously was dominated by America, Europe, and Japan expanded to new markets around the world such as Australia, China, and Ghana, which produced homegrown picture books as well as translated international titles.

2000s and Onwards

The Rise of Digital Publishing

Even as the demand for traditionally illustrated picture books has not dwindled, the rise of digital technology in the 21st century has brought about a new era of picture book designs, graphic novels and illustrations. Digital publishing apps have opened up opportunities for illustrators and graphic artists to experiment with different styles and media, such as combining illustrations with animation techniques. Since distance is no longer an issue for authors to work with illustrators, authors began to contract illustrators from anywhere around the globe.

Explore the different Types of Illustrations for Children’s Books to learn more and decide which to choose for your own picture book, and read our article How Much Do You Pay an Illustrator for a Children’s Book? to guide you when working with an illustrator.

Advances in technology enabled the creation of interactive and multimedia elements, transforming the reading experience for young readers. A study stated that young children may benefit from technology-enhanced picture books, which include dynamic images or animations, music, and sounds, more effectively than those with static pictures. Digital picture books with visual enhancements assist children in linking the images to the story, thereby improving their understanding of the narrative (Bus & Anstadt, 2021; Christ, Wang, Chiu, & Strekalova-Hughes, 2019; Furenes et al., 2021; Miller & Warschauer, 2014). With images in motion and parts being zoomed in, children also get to focus on specific parts of the pictures that align with the story, helping them understand it more (Mayer & Sims, 1994).

On the auditory enhancement side, verbal text can assist in helping children improve their vocabulary while sounds and music can help children connect with the emotions of the characters and mood of the story. However, the study also notes that visual and auditory enhancements may also overwhelm young readers with multiple sensory and “working memory” overload, making it hard for them to process the information better.

Modern Printing Techniques

Woodblock printing, which involved carving images into wooden blocks to print onto the pages, was the method used to create picture books in the 19th century. Color lithography, invented in 1796 by Aloys Senefelder, was combined with offset printing, invented in 1875, to mass-produce picture books with fully coloured illustrations in the early 20th century. Colour litography is done by first drawing a design onto a flat stone or metal plate. It is then fixed with a chemical reaction followed by applying the ink to the stone with a roller. Afterwards, both the stone and paper are covered with a board and padding. Finally, the stone is run through a press. In offset printing, CMYK printing plates are used to transfer images onto a rubber blanket then to a paper sheet.

Offset printing is done with four plates: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black (Key).

Nowadays, authors can choose between traditional bulk offset printing for higher quality print runs of at least 500 copies and digital print on demand. To accommodate the demands of authors in modern times, some offset printers can now offer warehousing and shipping as part of their printing packages to free authors from the hassles of storing and shipping their orders.

Digital print on demand allows authors and publishers to print books as they are ordered, rather than in large quantities. This method offers several benefits, including reducing the need for storage space and minimising waste by only printing what is needed. For self-publishing authors, digital print on demand provides a low-risk way to bring their creations to life without the financial burden of traditional large print runs.

BONUS SECTION: A Brief History of Wordless Picture Books

A wordless picture book is told only in images. The first published American wordless picture book is What Whiskers Did by Ruth Carroll, published in 1932 by Macmillan. A story about a runaway Scottish terrier who befriends a rabbit, escapes a fox, and reunites with his owner, it remained the only American wordless picture book for at least two decades.

Title page of What Whiskers Did by Ruth Carroll

From the 1960s onwards, the genre gained popularity. Mitsumasa Anno became world-famous for his wordless picture books, including Anno’s Journey, which was published in Fukuinkan Shoten, Japan in 1977. With a math teacher background, his intricate illustrations were infused with math concepts as well as humour and visual tricks.

Cover art of Anno’s Journey by Mitsumasa Anno, published in Fukuinkan Shoten, Japan in 1977

The Snowman by Raymond Briggs also became a beloved classic. Published by Hamish Hamilton in U.K. in 1978, the pencil-illustrated picture book is about a young boy who constructs a snowman that magically comes to life at midnight.

The Snowman by Raymond Briggs

David Wiesner, who won the Caldecott medal three times, is a famous wordless picture book illustrator. Among his famous works is Flotsam (2006), which is about a boy on the beach who likes to collect objects he finds along the shore. He discovers an old underwater camera and finds its hidden secrets.

Flotsam by David Wiesner, published in 2006

Today, wordless picture books continue to be celebrated for their ability to engage readers through their own creativity, allowing young people to become active participants in the storytelling process. They are used as educational tools to teach children about art, storytelling, and imagination, proving that sometimes, pictures can indeed be louder than words. They are also the forerunner for today’s graphic novel genre.

If you want to dig deeper into the history of picture books, get a copy of Pictured Worlds: Masterpieces of Children’s Book Art by 101 Essential Illustrators from Around the World by Leonard S. Marcus, published by Abrams. Read the author’s adapted introduction to his book in an article published in Publishers Weekly.

Final Thoughts on the History of Picture Books

The journey of picture books through history is a testament to their enduring power to educate, entertain, and inspire. Each milestone, such as the establishment of the Newbery and the Caldecott medals, the launch of The Little Golden Books series, and the rise of technology-enhanced picture books, highlights how this art form has embraced change while staying true to its core mission: connecting stories with visuals in a way that resonates with readers of all ages.

As we look ahead, the future of picture books promises even more creativity and accessibility, driven by more digital advances. Whether classic or cutting-edge, picture books remain a beloved medium that bridges generations, fosters imagination, and celebrates the universal language of storytelling. Their introduction to the world of reading is an experience that resonates with all the kids and every person who cherishes the beauty of stories.

Keep the tradition alive by creating your own masterpiece with GetYourBookIllustrations. Let’s get started!

Share your thoughts with us in the comments!

• Which historical era of picture books do you find most fascinating, and why?
• Do you think awards like the Newbery and Caldecott Medals still hold the same significance in the modern book market? Why or why not?