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Box History and Development of Accounting Accounting enjoys a remarkable heritage. The history of accounting is as old as civilisation. The seeds of accounting were most likely first sown in Babylonia and Egypt around B.C. who recorded transactions of payment of wages and taxes on clay tablets.

Historical evidences reveal that Egyptians used some form of accounting for their treasuries where gold and other valuables were kept. The incharge of treasuries had to send day wise reports to their superiors known as Wazirs (the prime minister) and from there month wise reports were sent to kings. Babylonia, known as the city of commerce, used accounting for business to uncover losses taken place due to frauds and lack of efficiency. In Greece, accounting was used for apportioning the revenues received among treasuries, maintaining total receipts, total payments and balance of government financial transactions.

Romans used memorandum or daybook where in receipts and payments were recorded and wherefrom they were posted to ledgers on monthly basis. ( B.C to A.D). China used sophisticated form of government accounting as early as B.C. Accounting practices in India could be traced back to a period when twenty three centuries ago, Kautilya, a minister in Chandragupta’s kingdom wrote a book named Arthashasthra , which also described how accounting records had to be maintained.

Luca Pacioli’s, a Franciscan friar (merchant class), book Summa de