[NATIVE AMERICAN] 1950s Navajo Weaving with Concentric Serrated Diamonds

A Navajo (Diné) Weaving with Concentric Serrated Diamond Design. Southwest, circa 1950s.

A striking geometric weaving organized around a succession of concentric diamonds in reddish brown, gray, red, black, and cream. A small brown lozenge occupies the center, enclosed by expanding colored fields whose finely serrated edges create an almost vibrating outline. Broad cream passages separate the central medallion from the larger surrounding diamond, while diagonal black bands and small red-and-brown devices occupy the gray corner fields. A narrow black outer border develops pronounced inward-pointing teeth along the long edges.

The composition derives its force from the contrast between its clear overall structure and the intricate treatment of each boundary. Seen at a distance, the nested diamonds read as broad, emphatic shapes; closer examination reveals the numerous fine points that break up their contours. Variations within the gray yarn add further texture, tempering the strong contrasts of red, black, and cream.

Serrated diamonds have a long history in Navajo weaving. Nineteenth-century Diné artists developed complex variations on the motif through exchanges with neighboring textile traditions, including the serrate patterns of Mexican Saltillo serapes. During the later nineteenth-century transition from blanket making to rug production, such designs became prominent in the brilliantly patterned textiles often described as “eye dazzlers.” The example offered here carries that established vocabulary into a mid-twentieth-century composition of more concentrated, monumental forms.

Its broad central arrangement, subsidiary corner ornaments, and serrated border create a cohesive design with considerable decorative strength. Minor bleeding of the red color is noted.