Who invented windows for houses? If you’ve ever wondered about the origin of windows, you’re in the right place. Small openings that let light and fresh air into a room have been present since people started building homes. However, cultures have had many different solutions for sealing their windows over time.
Window sealing depended on the resources that were available, what methods had been invented and how much money people had available to spend on their homes. Weather conditions also played a part in how people sealed openings in their homes. Glass windows weren’t used until around A.D. 100. Learn more about the weird and wonderful history of window glass!
Using glass in windows is a fairly recent invention. Before glass panes were invented and became affordable, window panes were made of different materials ranging from paper and cloth to animal hide. In warm parts of the world, ancient windows were sealed with wooden shutters, iron grilles or left open to the air.
People who had money sealed their windows with panes made of minerals, like mica or alabaster. This kind of windowpane let more light in and was waterproof. Because mineral stone could be sliced so thin, some of these windows were also fairly transparent. Archaeological evidence suggests that mineral panes were often used in Roman bathhouses.
The first recorded glass window was most likely produced by the Romans around A.D. 100. These panes were either cast or blown and were used to block drafts and provide security. From a design point of view, they were thick and opaque, not meant for letting light in or allowing people to see outside.
Archaeological evidence suggest that Roman glassmaking developed into a flourishing industry between 1-50 A.D. This was due partly to the knowledge spread by eastern Mediterranean glassmakers, the invention of glassblowing, and the resources and economic reach of the Roman Empire. The transparent glass we know today would only be invented a millenia later.
Glass panes on windows and doors were also considered a luxury during the 1600s. Only the exceedingly wealthy had them and they set people back so much that they only installed windows in important rooms.
Glass was an aristocratic feature and was so rare that people even took down the windows when they weren’t in use. By the 17th century though, advancements in glassmaking made it a more readily available commodity and houses were filled with the once rare material.
One of the earliest known windows with colored glass was found at St. Paul’s Monastery in England, built around A.D. 686. Stained glass windows are a common feature in churches and cathedrals. Like other forms of glass, they were historically expensive and only used by wealthy people or institutions like the church.
Even though these attractive glass panes come in different colors and aesthetics today, manufacturers still employ the same method developed during the Middle Ages. Stained glass is still more expensive than clear glass, although it’s much more affordable and accessible than it used to be. Today, it’s commonly used for decorative windows in homes and many other kinds of buildings.
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