Edward S. Curtis "Zahadolzhá - Navaho" Original Vintage Photogravure on Japon Vellum, 1907, Cardozo Collection

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An original photogravure from Edward S. Curtis's The North American Indian. Zahadolzhá reproduces a Navajo dry painting, or sandpainting, named … Read more An original photogravure from Edward S. Curtis's The North American Indian. Zahadolzhá reproduces a Navajo dry painting, or sandpainting, named for Zahadolzhá, the Fringe Mouth god: two rows of holy figures stand on either side of a tall cornstalk inside a narrow border. Zahadolzhá is one of the holy figures of the Night Chant, or Yébichai, the nine-night Navajo healing ceremony that Curtis documented in this volume. Curtis made the photograph in 1907, and it was published that year in Volume 1, the first volume of the series, which covers the Apache, Jicarilla and Navajo. Curtis used the spelling Navaho; today the name is written Navajo.

From Volume 1, facing page 122. Printed on Japanese vellum (Japon), one of the three papers used for the original subscriber sets, a smooth, warm-toned sheet that holds the fine detail of the gravure. Titled in the plate lower left (ZAHADOLZHÁ - NAVAHO*), with "From Copyright Photograph 1907 by E.S. Curtis" in the plate below the image. The plate mark shows around the image.

Image: 5 1/8 x 6 7/8 inches. Sheet: 9 1/2 x 12 1/2 inches.

Provenance: the Christopher G. Cardozo Collection. The collection's inventory number (CCI3425) and "V1" are written in pencil on the verso.

A vintage impression from the original publication, not a later restrike. Sold unframed, ready to mat and frame. See less