The first use by man of colour for decoration dates back to 30,000 B.C. when coloured earths were used to decorate hearths in prehistoric caves. More famous are the cave paintings in southern France and Spain. These date from 15,000 B.C. and are believed to have been painted in preparation for hunting trips.
As civilisation developed so did the manufacture and use of colours. As early as 4,000 B.C. the Egyptians had enormously improved the quality of earth colours. Mineral colours and lake pigments were also developed by them.
The ancient Greeks were the first to manufacture inorganic pigments by processing minerals into colours. White Lead was known as early as the 4th century B.C.