The textbook presents in-depth presentation of the main topics of the educational lecture course “History and Methodology of Chemistry”. The authors examine the evolution of chemical knowledge from ancient times to the present day. Particular attention in the book is paid to the analysis of the development and formation of fundamental concepts of chemical theory; the complex and lengthy transition from ancient atomism to modern teachings about the structure of matter is traced in detail. The first volume of the manual is devoted to the most important events in the history of chemistry of the classical period. It examines the contribution of major scientists and philosophers to the process of formation of basic scientific concepts and theoretical ideas from antiquity to the 60s. XIX century. The publication contains a large number of illustrations that contribute to a more visual reconstruction of the events described, as well as short biographies of the most prominent chemists and thinkers of antiquity. For teachers, students and graduate students of chemical departments of classical universities, as well as a wide range of readers interested in the problems of the history of chemistry .