1870s Native American Navajo Style Blanket/Rug - 4'7" X 7'7"

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Description

Antique hand woven American-Indian navajo blanket in original great condition. The blanket has been made in the end of 19th … Read more Antique hand woven American-Indian navajo blanket in original great condition. The blanket has been made in the end of 19th century in bright red shade. Repeating diamonds in white and indigo shades are decorating it. Smaller inner diamonds are in yellow and orange. This blanket is collectible and in original good condition.

Navajo rugs and blankets are textiles produced by Navajo people of the Four Corners area of the United States. Navajo textiles are highly regarded and have been sought after as trade items for over 150 years. Commercial production of handwoven blankets and rugs has been an important element of the Navajo economy. As one expert expresses it, "Classic Navajo serapes at their finest equal the delicacy and sophistication of any pre-mechanical loom-woven textile in the world.

Navajo textiles were originally utilitarian blankets for use as cloaks, dresses, saddle blankets, and similar purposes. Toward the end of the 19th century, weavers began to make rugs for tourism and export. Typical Navajo textiles have strong geometric patterns. They are a flat tapestry-woven textile produced in a fashion similar to kilims of Eastern Europe and Western Asia, but with some notable differences. In Navajo weaving, the slit weave technique common in kilims is not used, and the warp is one continuous length of yarn, not extending beyond the weaving as fringe. Traders from the late 19th and early 20th century encouraged adoption of some kilim motifs into Navajo designs.

The original function of Navajo weaving was to produce clothing: "shoulder robes, rectangular panel or wrap-around-dresses, semi-tailored shirts, breechcloths, and a variety of belts, sashes, hair ties, and garters. The production of weaving flourished after the mid 1800s for trade with the white settlers.

Navajo rugs and wall hangings look amazing in a variety of spaces and alongside numerous decorative styles, but they look especially beautiful when paired with other earthy, natural materials. For instance, a hand-woven Navajo rug would look terrific near a leather couch. A rich, luxurious shade of chocolate, tobacco, or cognac leather would work beautifully with the deep reds, grays, and blues of traditionally styled Navajo Indian rugs.


Condition: original good,

Circa: 1870,

Size: 4.7' x 7.7' ( 143cm x 234cm),

Material: wool,

Country of origin: North America,

Style: Navajo,

Background colours: bright red, yellow, orange, white, indigo. See less