A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart used in project management to illustrate a project schedule. It displays a timeline of a project's tasks or activities, along with their start and end dates, dependencies, and progress. Each task or activity is represented by a horizontal bar on the chart, with its length indicating its duration, and its position on the chart indicating its start and end dates. Gantt charts provide a visual representation of a project's schedule, which helps project managers to plan, track, and communicate project progress to stakeholders. They are named after their inventor, Henry Gantt, who designed them in the early 1900s.