Adobe Gallery Blog

It is documented that the Navajo made and wore silver buttons as early as 1824 and there are illustrations of this as early as 1840. The Navajo adopted this adornment from the Mexican, who had adopted it from the Spaniard.

Navajo men put buttons on trousers, jackets, moccasins, belts, pistol belts, gun scabbards, saddles, bridles, leather pouches, pouch straps and bow guards. Women used them as buttons on blouses and decorations running down sleeves and around collars. There were occasions where a Navajo would take buttons off clothing and use it for purchases at the trading post.

The earliest and simplest buttons were small domed buttons made by pressing a disk of silver into a rounded depression gouged in a piece of hard wood or soft iron, Later, fluted and decorated buttons appeared.

We are presenting 15 different groups of silver buttons, each group containing a different number of buttons. They are being offered as group lots, as shown below.

An excellent presentation of Navajo silver buttons is presented in our referenced book.
Provenance: This collection of 255 silver buttons was put together by a resident of Gallup, New Mexico in the 1980s.

Subject: Diné (Navajo) Handmade Silver Buttons
Jeweler Unknown
Category: Buttons and Conchas
Origin: Diné - Navajo Nation
Medium: Silver
Size: Less than 1"