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In Navajo (Diné) culture, it was Spider Woman who taught the Navajos the art of weaving. Before sitting down at their looms, weavers would rub their hands in spider webs. In this way they would hope to absorb the skills and wisdom of Spider Woman.

According to an excerpt from “A Guide to Navajo Weaving” by Kent McManis & Robert Jeffries:

"The Navajo believe that the gift of weaving was taught to them by Spider Woman, one of the Navajo Holy People. Spider Woman originally showed Changing Woman (another holy person) how to weave, with the stipulation that she would in turn teach the Navajo. Spider Man showed them how to make the loom and tools out of sacred Navajo stones and shells (turquoise, jet, white shell, and abalone), as well as with the earth, sun, rain, sky themselves. This important connection to the earth and elements is characteristic of the Navajo respect and reverence for the natural world. It also demonstrates the significance of weaving within the Navajo religion."

The traditional art of weaving has been passed down from mother to daughter since the 18^th century. Early blankets had limited colors, which included some vegetal dyes (created from the local plants). Over time they were made with a few colors brought in by the Spaniards. Many of the weavings available today have a breathtaking array of colors drawn from the natural beauty of the Southwest, including many vegetal dye combinations and dyes brought in by various traders.

In the traditional Navajo family, along with tending to the family, the woman’s main role was that of the weaver. As a blanket was finished, it would be brought to the local trading post. There it would be traded for food staples, supplies and money. This was an important means by which Navajo families supported themselves.

According to a fascinating web site hosted by Northern Arizona University (http://library.nau.edu/speccoll/exhibits/traders/oralhistories/oralhist.html), which has gathered oral histories of people involved in trading posts of the Southwest, Navajo rugs were a vital source of income. Here’s an excerpt from an interview with Colina Yazzie talking about her mother selling rugs:

“A lot of times when she went in to sell her rug, she would show it to them, she would lay the rug out, the trader would look at it, and they would always.... the trader knew that she would need food, groceries, whatever, so what he offered was, "I'll give you a certain amount in cash, and then the rest, maybe you can go in and buy what you need." And that's the way the trading took place back then. But now, she still does the same. She goes into the trading post at Hubbell's and Bill will let her buy food, and he'll still give her cash whenever she goes to sell her rugs.”

Over time, Navajo weavers gained a reputation for the superior quality of their weavings, eventually leading many collectors to prize their work. We have a remarkable collection of weavings available here at Indian River Gallery. They range from Two Grey Hills to Ganado to Germantown blankets, with some dating back to the 1800s. Feel free to discover the beauty of these remarkable masterpieces that we have the pleasure of sharing with you at our web site, www.indianrivergallery.com.