Navajo Rugs

While I was at the Petroglyph National Monument Visitors Center there was a sale of Navajo Rugs going on. I couldn't afford any of these magnificent rugs. (I would never walk on one) Most are used to hang on the wall. One photo show a small weaving loom but no one was weaving while I was there. There was a Navajo man giving a talk about how the rugs are made and what some of the symbols on them mean. These rugs were brought here from the Hubbell Trading Post near Ganada, Arizona which is still in operation. It was first opened in 1878. These rugs averaged in price from $300 to $3000. Many were made in the last few years, but I did notice a few made in the 1970's. If you can find a rug made in the late 1800's or early 1900's you will pay dearly for it. Most are in museums as they should be. It is mostly the women that do the weaving but there are a few men getting into it. The larger rugs can take up to a year to weave. You can see a neighborhood of homes behind the visitors center in some of the photos as well as the Sandia Mountains in the distance. The last photos show the roof of a traditional Indian or Spanish patio with long strings of New Mexico Chili peppers hanging from them.