About Navajo Rugs

The Classic Period of Navajo weavings featured stripes, diamonds and diagonal twill.

Navajo rugs were not heavily produced until the early 1900s though Southwestern Native American pueblo peoples had been weaving for centuries by then. Navajo rugs' origins rest in the long-standing tradition of painstakingly crafting blankets from hand-spun and hand-dyed material, some of which took years to complete. In the 21st century, expertly crafted Navajo rugs and blankets are regarded as fine art, featured by museums and purchased by collectors at a high price.

Archaeological History

Archaeologists have found loom-woven, cotton blanket fragments at the archaeological sites of the Southwestern pueblo people known as the Hopi -- ancestors of the Navajo -- dating to around 1,000 AD, which was unusual in that they were the first people in the Americas to grow and utilize cotton in this manner. The Hopi also used the cotton to make rugs and clothing. Archaeologists believe the Hopi passed this knowledge on to the Navajo people.

History From the Navajo Perspective

The Navajo people's legend surrounding the origins of their weaving practices do not mention the Hopi. Navajo legend states Spider Woman -- a creator spirit -- taught the people how to weave using a loom Spider Man instructed them to build. This loom was constructed of natural elements, such as sky and earth cords, sheet lightening, warped sticks of the sun rays, crystals, a white shell and the sun halo. Therefore, the origins of weaving, according to Navajo legends, are not practical, but supernatural in nature.

Weaving Process

The traditional Navajo weaving process is labor intensive and differed slightly from that of the Hopi. The Navajo use wool, not cotton, and the women, not the men, traditionally weave the rugs as in the Hopi tribe. After the sheep are sheared in one piece from tail to neck, the wool is washed, conditioned with yucca and then dried in the sun. The wool is then corded -- which mixes different pieces to achieve the desired color and consistency -- hand-spun to differing lengths and thicknesses and then hand-dyed. Dyes were sourced from plants, such as grape, prickly pear cactus, juniper, chokecherry, mahogany, thistle and oak. Until the commercial rise for their products began in the early 1900s, Navajo rugs and blankets were completed slowly in an artist's spare time.

The Rise of the Rugs

Though handwoven rugs were found in Hopi settlements and used in Navajo culture, Navajo rugs were not widespread in the Southwest until the early 1900s when settler and tourist demand for the traditional wear skyrocketed. At that point, quality declined rapidly to meet production demands; coarse material and quick weave designs were used to make marketable rugs and saddle blankets.

Controversy

Navajo weavings were traditionally adorned with sacred symbols and revered as an object of spiritual significance. Those symbols are still used in the 21st century creation of traditional Navajo blankets and rugs, many of which sell as expensive fine art. Some in the Navajo community believe the desensitization to these symbols degrades their power and meaning, according to experts from the University of Texas at Austin.

References

• University of Arizona: The Development of the Navajo Rug and Blanket
• University of Texas at Austin: School of Information: A Chronology of Navajo Rug and Blanket Developments