Toh-Atin Gallery

Diamond Twill weaving were often the favorite style of rug to be used as a saddle blanket because of their thickness and durability. This saddle blanket was probably made with a woman or young person in mind. The style is much more difficult to weave, even though it looks simple, and most weavers did not attempt it. 

This geometric pattern weaving is from the Burntwater Chapter area of the Navajo Nation. It was here that Navajo women began using vegetal dyes in patterned weavings as opposed to striped patterns that had evolved in the late 1930's. This weaving is made with a combination of natural colored wool and a gold vegetal dye. 

This is a classic striped single Saddle Blanket. For years, these saddle blankets were the choice of Cowboys and Native riders for their durability. This style took less time to weave than the twill blankets and were also used for throw rugs in ranchers and homes in the Southwest. 

This weaving type are made in styles that were originally made as saddle blankets. Slightly thicker than the basic tapestry weave, the twill was popular because of its durability. Being underneath a saddle meant it did not have to have a detailed pattern. They also became popular as throw rugs. The top weaving is called Diamond Twill because of the subtle designs and the bottom a Herringbone. 

This striped pattern originated at the Chinle Trading Post at the mouth of Canyon de Chelley, Arizona. This canyon is the heart of the Navajo Nation and is now a National Monument. The pattern consists of stripes with “Chinle Diamonds” in between. They are usually woven with some vegetal dyes. 

An unusual weaving, this is a Two Face pattern as it is different of each side. It is one of the most difficult types of weaving to make and requires the weaver to create two different designs on a single warp. Today, less that a dozen weavers weave this style of rug. 

This is a Raised Outline weaving which originated at the Coal Mine Mesa Trading Post near Tuba City, Arizona. By alternating weft threads, the weaver produced a weaving that had a simmering effect on the viewer and left a raised outline of each of the patterns on the weaving. 

These weavings are made in styles that were originally made as saddle blankets. Slightly thicker than the basic tapestry weave, the twill was popular because of its durability. Being under a saddle meant it did not have to have a detailed pattern. They also became popular as throw rugs. The top weaving is called Diamond Twill because of the subtle designs and the bottom a Herringbone. 

This style of weaving developed at the Wide Ruins Trading Post in Arizona where weavers worked with traders Bill and Sallie Lippincott. Sallie was the first trader to encourage the use of vegetal dyes and to remove the borders from the Navajo rugs. The style was developed in the late 1930’s and early 1940’s. As the years past, the designs became more and more intricate. This is a fine example of a contemporary Wide Ruins. 

This is a classic pieces referred to as a Gallup Throw. Most of them were made in or near Gallup, New Mexico and were originally sold to the Fred Harvey Company which operated hotels across the Santa Fe Railroad line running for the eastern part of the country to California. They were sold as Authentic Navajo Rugs in the Indian Craft Gift Shops that Fred Harvey had in all of his hotels. His promotion of Native American Arts provided an opportunity for many Southwestern Native artists to make a living. The size of these weavings made them easy for tourists to pick up as souvenirs. 

This weaving is an example of a vegetal dye rug. The geometric pieces made with these organic dyes originated at the Burntwater Trading Post North of Holbrook, Arizona. These pieces are unique as nothing in them can from a store or trading post. The weaver sheared the sheep, cleaned and carded the wool, spun it into yarn, picked plants and made the dyes, colored the yarn and then wove the rug. 

This is a Raised Outline weaving which originated at the Coal Mine Mesa Trading Post near Tuba City, Arizona. by alternating weft threads, the weaver produced a weaving that had a simmering effect on the viewer and left a raised outline of each of the patterns on the weaving. 

This weaving came from the Four Corners area of the Navajo Reservation where the states of Colorado, Arizona, Utah and New Mexico meet. Two trading posts in that area, Teec Nos Pos and Red Mesa, encouraged weavers to work with brighter colors and designs. 

This small weaving has it’s origins at the Teec Nos Pos Trading Post in Arizona. It is near the Four Corners where the states of Utah, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado meet. This style was developed in the early 20th Century when a missionary who lived near the post began giving weavers magazines which had photographs of Oriental/Asian weavings. The weavers, new to the idea of weaving floor rugs as their looms were used to create blankets to wear, adopted the basic geometric patterns of the pieces from the magazines. This area is produces some of the most popular Navajo weavings. 

This weaving was made near Chinle, Arizona near the mouth of Canyon de Chelly in the heart of the Navajo Nation. The style originated with the help and urging of a Navajo Trading Post owner named Cozy McSparron who encourage weavers to make rugs with striped panels decorated with geometric patterns. Weavers from this area have used this general pattern since the early 1930’s. 

The early vegetal dye weavings, which began to be popular in the late 1930's, were woven in striped patterns. In the late 1960's, some weavers in the Burntwater Chapter area began to use vegetal dyes in geometric patterns. Initially, traders were skeptic of the trend, but as popularity grew, they endorsed it as a new style of weaving. 

This weaving is a contemporary Chinle rug woven with numerous strips and using a single pattern to decorate the panels. It is narrower that most pieces of its length and was probably ordered from the weaver as a runner for a table or buffet. Navajo trading post owners were dedicated to finding new markets and uses for weavings that they purchased.

An unusual weaving, this is a Two Face pattern because it is different of each side. It is one of the most difficult types of weaving to make and requires the weaver to create two different designs on a single warp. Today, less that a dozen weavers weave this style of rug. 

Twill weaving was often used for saddle blankets as the pattern was not important and the twill, by its nature, is thicker than a normal tapestry weave and wore better under the saddle. Single saddle blankets were placed directly beneath the saddles while double saddle blankets were folded in half and place under the saddle. 

This weaving has it's origins near the Four Corners, where the states of Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico meet. The serrated design probably evolved from early Hispanic weavings, called Saltillos. Unlike those weavings, most Navajo rugs have a border.In this case the border design also has a serrated pattern. These weavings are often referred to as Teec Nos Pos outline rugs as each serrated stripe is followed, or outline, by another color yarn. 

As Navajo weaving became popular, not all weaving were done to the specification of the Trading Post owners. Many weavers had their own feelings about what they wanted to weave and created unique pieces that could not be attributed to a specific trading post area. This piece borrows a plain border from Two Grey Hills designs, crosses found in the early Crystal weavings and larger patterns that were usually seen in the bands of Chinle weavings. 

Navajo weavers often adapted patterns to fit their artistic desires. This weaving has multiple diamond designs that were most often found in the Chinle or Crystal area weavings. What this weaver did was to eliminate the stripes and place these diamonds on a plain background. She created a weaving that is simple and, from a distance, has a three dimensional appearance. 

Very few Navajo weaving are made as runners and, in the 1930's when this piece was woven, that was even more true. The hand spun wool yarn held up well on the floor and, because of World War II, department stores were unable to buy wool floor rugs. Navajo traders stepped in and exported thousands of weavings from the Reservation. A piece like this was surely a special order. It is difficult on a Navajo loom to make a runner as the weaver would not be able to see the first part of the weaving, which had to be rolled up, when she got to the other end. Not many weavers at that time wove this style of rug. 

This geometric patten Navajo weaving comes from the Burntwater Chapter area of the Navajo Nation. The pattern, while similar to patterns from Ganado and Two Grey Hills, differs in that the weaver used vegetal dyes to color the yarn. 

This weaving has its origins near the Four Corners, where the states of Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico meet. The serrated design probably evolved from early Hispanic weavings, called Saltillos. Unlike those weavings, most Navajo rugs have a border. In this case the border design also has a serrated pattern. These weavings are often referred to as Teec Nos Pos outline rugs as each serrated stripe is followed, or outline, by another color yarn. 

To the southwest of the Four Corners, and directly west of the Teec Nos Pos Trading post, the Red Mesa weavings evolved. These serrated patterns were very similar to the ones from Teec Nos Pos, but differed in that the usually had a simple border and were often made with brighter colors. The trading post owner, from the 1940-1960's time period, encouraged the used of bright colors and provided dyes and yarns in those colors. When the post changed hands, the colors became more subdued. Red Mesa no longer exists and most of the weavers in that area take their rugs to Teec Nos Pos.