Pictorial Weaving, "God Bless Our Home"

Date1920-1925

MediumHandspun wool and commercial dyes Warp: white yarn, z-spun, no ply; 7 warps per inch Weft: black, red, grey-brown (undyed) yarns, z-spun, no ply

DimensionsOH 57 1/2" x OW 30 1/4"

Credit LineGift of Rex and Pat Lucke

Object number2019.609.8

DescriptionThis is a rectangular woven textile (rug) of native handspun wool and commercial dyes. The colors are grey, brown, dark brown, red, green and natural white/cream. The grey wool is undyed. The design consists of the adage "God BLESS / OUR HOME" woven in the center of the rug. Above and below the verse are rows of three stars, each star consisting of eight diamonds. Above and below the rows are stars and houses with one window each. The houses are flanked by large floral stems. Above and below the houses are rows of three stars, each star consisting of eight diamonds. The weaving is bordered in geometric patterns.
Label TextNavajo weavers acquired the fundamental elements of their craft from the Pueblo people who fled to Navajo territory in the wake of their revolt against the Spanish in 1680. Navajo women learned to weave using upright looms by observing Pueblo men and soon became masters in their own right. By the early eighteenth century, the Spanish sought out Navajo weavings as they considered them to be superior to those made in Mexico.

In 1848, the United States annexed the lands occupied by the Navajo. After a series of violent conflicts that eventually led to the forced removal of over 9,000 Navajo to Fort Sumner, the United States relocated the Navajo to a reservation located on border between the territories of Arizona and New Mexico.

Economic changes accompanied the forced resettlement of the Navajo people. Beginning in the 1870s, the United States government established trading posts within the reservation, encouraging the Navajo to abandon their subsistence-based economy in favor of a market-oriented one. This trend accelerated with the arrival of the Santa Fe railroad in the 1880s, which connected the Navajo to the broader Anglo-American marketplace for the first time.

With the arrival of American traders, Navajo women were able to acquire chemical dyes and machine-made yarns for their weavings. The style of Navajo weavings changed as well; in addition to traditional, geometric patterns, weavers began to produce pictorial designs.

In response to their changing cultural milieu, weavers began to incorporate Anglo-American motifs into their weavings. In the early 20th century, when this weaving was created, many Anglo-American parlors displayed a needlework motto or picture that read “God Bless Our Home.” The Navajo woman who created this weaving incorporated this ubiquitous phrase into her work, representing the cultural exchange that occurred between the Anglo-American and Navajo peoples.
Inscribed"God BLESS/ OUR HOME"
ProvenanceRex and Pat Lucke