Synopses & Reviews
This history of Navajo weaving is a revised, expanded, and updated version of Marian Rodee's 1981 classic Old Navajo Rugs: Their Development from 1900 to 1940. Designed for the general reader, museum goer, or collector, it offers a guide to identifying and dating rugs by means of weaving materials. Wool quality, the author explains, is the single most important clue to the date of a rug's manufacture. Rodee also provides historical background on the great Navajo weavers and especially on the traders who bought rugs from the Navajo--Cotton, Moore, Hubbell, Bloomfield, McSparron, and others--all of whom had some influence on the development of the craft and patterns of Navajo weaving.
Since the first edition of this book, more information about more collections of rugs has become available, and this new edition includes a greatly expanded section of color plates in addition to sixty-four black-and-white photographs. Rodee has also added a map of the Navajo Nation showing the location of trading posts and outlet stores.
For anyone who enjoys looking at Navajo rugs, and especially for those considering buying them, this book is an indispensable and informative guide.
Synopsis
A guide to identifying and dating rugs by means of weaving materials, providing historical background on the great Navajo weavers and traders.
Table of Contents
Introduction -- Navajo weaving before 1890 -- The formative regional rug period, 1890-1920 -- Fiber, the key to identification -- J. B. Moore and the crystal trading post -- George Bloomfield and two grey hills -- The Shiprock fair and the Hyde Exploring Expedition -- Lorenzo Hubbell of Ganado and his trading empire -- Wheelwright, McSparron, and the Chinle revival -- Tees Nos Pos, Red Lake, and Tuba City -- Pictorial and ceremonial rugs -- Weaving today -- Summary.