Origins of Roman Blinds

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So, where did Roman blinds originate? Rome? Yes, the general idea behind the Roman blinds we use today originated in the Mediterranean.

Climate there is warm, dry and often dusty. Especially during the days of ancient Rome, there weren't many paved roads, and a lot of traffic and carts traveling along unpaved roads stirred up a lot of dust into the air. That dry dust traveled everywhere too, sticking to clothes, coating anything left outside and it inevitably traveled inside the homes too, covering furniture and belongings with a fine coating of dust. Not only did it cover the furniture, but it most likely also got into the food and water as well.

Another major contributor to the dust problem in Ancient Rome was the fact that many of the buildings were made of stone. Builders would chip away at big blocks of stone whenever they were involved in a building project, and this naturally pushed even more dust up into the air.

Dust was, needless to say, a problem in Rome and other hot and dry Mediterranean countries. In an effort to prevent all of that dust entering into people's houses, the Roman blind was invented.
It is commonly believed that this is precisely why the Roman shades of today were invented. Blinds similar in appearance were used in ancient Rome to cover windows and keep the dust out. Of course, they soon realized that they were useful for other reasons too, such as keeping the sun from shining into their home, thus lowering the heat inside their houses as well.

While the Roman blind was initially strictly a practical thing, it soon became decorational as well, as women loved to dress up their houses and add color to them. What once started out as a rather drab and purely functional blind, soon became a status symbol and something used to show off wealth and taste.

Of course the blinds have changed a lot since their initial invention. Nowadays blinds are opened and closed using strings, and sometimes even by remote control. No longer are they only made from fabric either, but today you can buy roman blinds in a variety of different material, including bamboo, PVC and even sailcloth. In fact, you can make them yourself if you want to, choosing whatever you like to make them from.

In spite of the appearance changing with time, however, they are still used for very similar purposes today: To keep out the sun and dust, and also to decorate and liven up a room.