There are a few tools that can discover into the various aspects of life of ancient man. They can be summarized as archeological excavation, rock and pillar inscriptions, cave paintings and relicts of historical monuments. Rock paintings are a particular form of paintings done on the walls and ceilings of the cave shelter of ancient man. These paintings were the reflections of their social, cultural, religious and economic life. As the process of evolution continued primitive men devised the techniques of drawing paintings to express his feelings of daily life through pictures. His main object of drawing were objects of nature like sun, moon, stars, animals, birds, plants, trees and rivers etc. Besides he used to draw several activities of everyday life like hunting, running, dancing and walking. These paintings were engraved on the walls and ceilings of the rock shelters with the help of some sharp objects like rock or metal pieces. Thereafter various indigenous colours like colours extracted form leaves of trees are applied on it. Different ages in history have its own style of paintings. It is clearly evident from stark differences in paintings found from a single rock cave. Rock paintings were found all over the country. Some of the famous rock paintings found in various caves are that found in Ajanta and Ellora caves in Maharashtra and Bhimabetaka cave in Madhya Pradesh. Rock paintings were discovered from several parts of Bihar from which rock painting discovered in Kaimur plateau regions are the most important.
Many rock painting sites have been discovered in the Kaimur district from which most important are Mokwas, Patesar, and Jhapia. Badki Goriya and Dugha. Besides Kaimur plateau there are other sites of rock paintings like Nawada, Jamui and Rohtas districts in Bihar. In spite of some distinctive features of Kaimur rock paintings most of their nature, style and content as compared to those in other rock painting sites of India are the same. Several rock paintings found in Bihar have some general features. Almost all these rock paintings have been executed on the smooth surfaces of the inner walls and ceilings of the rock shelters and caves.
In many examples it is noticed that the paintings of the earlier period are superimposed by the subsequent paintings due to which sometimes it is very difficult to identify the paintings of a particular phase. This tradition of rock paintings are still found among forest dwelling tribals of Kaimur region. The most significant thing is that tribals of this region are still using the same symbols and pattern, same types of colours prepared form household objects. Similarly depiction of same subject matter such as various animals, human beings, floral design and geometrical pattern indicates great continuity in the tradition of rock paintings with little changes.
