Besides making pottery, the people of the ancient world also enjoyed painting. Evidences of early paintings can be found in the tombs of Egypt. These tombs contained statues and paintings of servants, who were believed to come alive when certain prayers were recited, thus extending their service to the pharaoh even into the next world. Images of daily life were also painted on the walls of the tombs and these images were believed to come alive in the next world. For this reason, the scenes depicted the pharaoh as young and healthy and in pleasant surroundings.

These tomb paintings and statues represent the most extensive treasury of ancient Egyptian art. Artists of ancient Egypt were taught, not to be original, but to follow rigid conventions. As a result, the artwork reveals a simple and formal style. For instance, in painting the human figure, various parts of the body are represented from their most characteristic angle. The head is shown from the side, the top half of the torso from the front, the legs from the side, and so on.

In ancient Greece and Rome, there too was evidence of painting, though very little of them were found. Some examples of these very rare paintings were found on the decorated vases of the Greeks and on walls in Pompeii and Herculaneum. The earliest vases, which dated back to the 12th century, were decorated with brown paint in a geometric style. Sticklike figures of men and animals were added to the overall design of the vases. However, vases found during the 8th century showed that much improvements had been made to the paintings of these men and animals, as they appeared more realistic and were painted in black on red clay. Three of the well-known Greek painters who lived during the 4th century B.C. were Parrhasius, Zeuxis, and Apelles. The ancient Romans on the other hand, did paintings which were mainly of people.

In Mesoamerica, paintings were found in Bonampak, Mexico, which depicted the life of the royal Maya family around 790B.C. Brightly coloured murals cover the walls of 3 rooms. In one of the rooms, the walls portray a battle in the jungle with the victorious king wearing a jaguar skin and taking a noble prisoner. Paintings on the walls of the other 2 rooms show the passing the throne to the heir, prisoners being tortured and also king and nobles wearing feather head-dresses and dancing in victory.

Paintings of the past have indeed undergone huge transformation as we compare them with the type of paintings that we see today. In the past, paintings were normally of simple, everyday life scenes, such as of people celebrating a festival or kings at a battle. However today, we see that paintings come in various forms, ranging from simple paintings of everyday life to abstract art, a form of art, which requires the observer to use his imagination to interpret the paintings of the painter. Some of the familiar painters that one probably know of include Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), the Italian painter known for his painting of the Mona Lisa and French painter Delaunay, Robert (1885-1941), one of the earliest painters of abstract art. Now, what are the names of the other painters you know of? What are the different types of painting? And last but not least, what do you think are the reasons why these people love to paint?

Ancient dances were depicted on an Egyptian tomb from the Old Kingdom, 3rd millennium BC..

A painting of a bison found in the Prehistoric Caves of northern Spain, which dates back to about 12,000 BC.

An 18th-century Kangra painting depicts Shiva and Ganesa, left, stringing together skulls of the dead while Parvati, right, looks on. Ganesa, their son, is the god first invoked at the beginning of worship or any new undertaking. Nandi the bull, behind the tree, is one of Shiva's chief attendants..

'Eiffel Tower' was one of Robert Delaunay's contributions to the style called cubism. (example of abstract art)

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), Italian. MONA LISA. About 1505. Oil on wood. 77 cm x 53 cm. Louvre, Paris, France.