Colloids play such an important role in life (indeed, it can be said without exaggeration that up to 90% of the bodies surrounding us are colloids) that it is not surprising if, even in the most distant epochs, we discover familiarity with processes occurring in colloidal systems. My task is to outline the development of colloidal chemistry and the views currently prevailing in it, and, in view of the abundance of material, it will be necessary to dwell only on the most salient points.