Minneapolis Institute of Art

Blanket

Diné (Navajo) artistLinkedCulture matchlcp-e3b72b25567a

Date

c. 1875

Medium

Wool

Culture

Navajo

Department

Arts of the Americas

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

Object ID

137720

A Navajo woman made this serape around 1865 during the Late Classic period (1860-1875), when Navajo artists wove some of the most spectacular textiles in their history. The pattern of this textile is emblematic of hozho, a fundamental philosophical concept for the Navajo that emphasizes the connection between beauty, symmetry, balance, order, and grace. This textile contains a “Spider Woman opening, ” a visible and intentional thin vertical white slit at the center of the weaving, thought to be a way to pay tribute to Spider Woman, who brought weaving to Navajo people and who helped spin the world into existence. United States, Americas

The authoritative record is held by Minneapolis Institute of Art. LinkedCulture surfaces this object and its connections; it does not alter institutional metadata.