When men lived in huts they never really had much in the way of a window. Normally a doorway with a drape to keep the cold air out and a chimney to let the smoke escape. Later when they started building multi room dwellings they had to do something about the light and fresh air so openings were left which got covered by some sort of drape when light was not wanted. Usually these openings were small.
They also developed shutters which were either slatted to let air but close out the light or solid to prevent the air. All of these tended to be rather inconvenient. The ancient Romans were the first to start using glass to let light in but keep the air out. These first windows were mullioned in that no big window panes were available and so lots of small pieces of glass were connected with some form of binding. Leaded glass windows were famous and it was this skill that was developed by the church into making stained glass windows that adorn churches and cathedrals throughout Europe, and of course elsewhere now.
The Japanese were using translucent paper for these purposes but these are very susceptible to weather.
As civilization developed and the glass manufacture developed larger sheets were becoming common and so manufactured sashes, initially largely of wood became common. Not only were these thing translucent but transparent as well. The double hung sash was great in that it allowed light and air which could be opened and closed at will.
Drapes also developed and are still with us today. Some drapes are heavy and tend to be black out and heat resistant. (either keeping the heat out or in). Drapes also tend to be decorative and all husbands will know the terrors of hanging drapes.
But Drapes are heavy and convert daytime into night. Blinds on the other hand are not nearly so final and are useful when one wants to reduce the light or stop direct sunlight for example. Venetian blinds are the a typical example. A set of horizontal louvers which are opaque and can be tilted from being fully closed to completely see though they were and still are a very effective method of allowing a room to change from being a goldfish bowl to being private with the turn of a lever. In addition they can be pulled up to be completely out of the way.
These are just some of the many styles of blinds available. There are horizontal louvers, vertical louvers, roller blinds, fold-able blinds, translucent blinds and blackout blinds. blinds and shades of all descriptions are available for every window and in materials and fabrics of many hues to suit anyone's taste.
It should be noted that no two window openings are ever exactly the same or even completely square. Thus most blinds are custom made to fit the exact measurement of each window opening. There are some standard stock sizes also on sale and these might fit and are somewhat cheaper. But to really get a satisfact5ory result it is recommended that each window opening be carefully measured and the desired type of blind be made up.
