Where did it begin?

I first remember drawing with a crayon, Crayola to be exact. We had a coloring book  with a gang of animals and flowers to fill in. So I feel that it was the beginning. Drawing and coloring. Also it was a quiet activity and mom's like that.

But before all that what did early  artist do? Color with plants, and then minerals, now with chemicals. We have tried to represent color seen in our eyes. Even color blind people try to name color seen or perceived.

Is it light? Is it truly a color of the leaf on a tree or the mass of bushes? Or are we as humans picking out the light reflected in our eyes and naming it? Pale taco gold, is that a paint color? Midnight blue light?

House paint is one thing, artist paint is another. So lets dip in and keep our brushes wet!