Native American Rugs and Wall Hangings

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Evidence suggests they often were tied to the saddle skirt behind the cantle rather than being placed under the saddle. During the first several decades of the twentieth century, weavers near railroad stops and tourist centers made small, loosely woven, pictorial mats. Now known as Gallup Throws, these inexpensive items were a favorite, easy to transport souvenir among visitors to the southwest. Pictorial and geometric “rugs,” too small for use on the floor and typically made with commercially spun and dyed yarns, remain a staple of the souvenir trade to this day. Weaving techniques in the Rug Period have primarily been limited to the standard tapestry weave which is identical on both sides. (This term should not be confused with “tapestry rugs” from Two Grey Hills.)

These categories are made depending on the difference in designs. Among them, the Ganado and Klagetoh have more simple designs than the other two categories. The Navajo weavers thought of four colors that portrayed their spirituality and culture on the rugs. Those colors are: white, black, yellow and blue. These colors acted as symbolizing elements for representing their tribe through the rugs. An authentic Navajo rug will cost you more than a thousand bucks. But you can invest your money in them if you are an art lover and want to decorate your house with the most unique rugs. These rugs go well with modern interiors, and they also have high durability to last for several years, undoubtedly. The Navajo rugs are undoubtedly one of the most artistic pieces of rugs you will ever find. Though some changes occurred in the designs and weaving methods of these rugs, they have maintained their authenticity and quality. Hopefully, this article has made all the facts clear about why are Navajo Rugs so expensive. Despite being a bit pricey, you can surely consider having one of these rugs as a symbol of ancient American heritage and culture.

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From the 1880s through the 1930s, reservation traders were the Navajos’ primary contact with the outside world. As such, they also were the weavers’ primary-or even sole-customers. Therefore traders exercised significant influence on weavings simply by paying more for the designs, sizes, colors, and qualities they wanted. Of course, trader’s choices were driven by what they thought they could sell to their off-reservation customers, but they also were guided by their own aesthetic sensibilities. As a result, distinctive styles of rugs emerged around several trading posts in the first years of the twentieth century. Such combinations of pattern and color are known as Regional Styles and are typically named after the trading post that encouraged their production.

Native American Rugs and Wall Hangings
vintage style native american rugs
vintage style native american rugs

Those made at the beginning of the century typically featured aniline red with natural whites, browns and greys, while rugs made from the 1920s on tended to rely even more heavily on a wide range of natural wool colors. One of the most popular designs that likely resulted from Moore’s work at Crystal was the Storm Pattern. It is generally defined as a central rectangle connected by zig-zag lines to smaller rectangles in each corner. The storm pattern often is said to have symbolic meaning: the zig-zags are lighting, the corner rectangles are the four sacred mountains of the Navajo or the four directions or the four winds, etc.

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The Bisti Navajo rug is the rarest of these Regional rugs, which are often made with more than nine borders. Many Bisti rugs have a thin checkered border. They display definite Oriental influences. Bisti rugs originated in the 1890s at a trading post southwest of Two Grey Hills. In 1896, J.B. Moore purchased the trading post and renamed it, Crystal, after a mountain spring of pure sparkling water.

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