Book - Jewels of the Navajo Loom: The Rugs of Teec Nos Pos [SOLD]

Jewels of the Navajo Loom: The Rugs of Teec Nos Pos

Ruth K. Belikove

Publisher: Museum of Indian Arts and Culture, Santa Fe

Softcover, first edition, 2003. 38 pages.  Illustrations of Teec Nos Pos rugs in full-page color. New condition.

The exhibit catalog was originally published by Adobe Gallery in 1994 to accompany an exhibit of the Ruth K. Belikove collection of Teec Nos Pos rugs at Arizona State University Art Museum.  In 2003, the Director of the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture requested permission from Adobe Gallery to revise and re-print the catalog to accompany its exhibit of the collection in Santa Fe.  Both editions of the catalog are out of print.

NOTE: a copy of the first edition is also available.  Click here to see it.

Unfortunately, this outstanding collection of rugs of Teec Nos Pos was put in auction following the death of Ruth Belikove in 2017, so it has now been dispersed.  The two editions of the catalog are the only available documentation of the Belikove collection.

From the Foreword:

One of the most complex regional rug styles to come out of the Navajo Reservation emerged in the area around Teec Nos Pos Trading Post in northeastern Arizona during the first half of the twentieth century. These intricate, colorful rugs, many of which were quite large, have captivated the imagination of dealers, collectors, and museum professionals for nearly a century. Ruth Belikove meticulously gathered her outstanding collection during the 1970s. Her rugs have been exhibited previously at the Nelson Arts Center at Arizona State University, the California Academy of Science, Ohio University, the Grace Hudson Museum in California, and the Yager Museum in New York. The exhibition catalog "The Rugs of Teec Nos Pos: Jewels of the Navajo Loom" was written by Ruth Belikove and published by Alexander Anthony through his Adobe Gallery in Albuquerque.

Ruth came to visit me in Santa Fe during the summer of 2002 to get acquainted and to tell me about her collection. I was quite impressed with the assemblage and was anxious to find some way to bring the show to Santa Fe. Opportunity knocked in December 2002, when our long-planned exhibition of Tewa culture had to be postponed. We quickly reviewed our options and saw the Teec Nos Pos exhibition as a perfect fit for our available gallery space. I think Ruth was in total disbelief when I called to tell her that we not only wanted to do the Teec show, but also wanted to have it up, with the catalog completed, in three months. The next thing she knew, the art handling company was knocking on her door in California, and the rugs were on their way to New Mexico.

In between regional travel and a trip to Australia, Ruth supplied images of the rugs, read manuscript and label copy, and quickly agreed to a number of proposed adjustments to the catalog in support of our quest to further accentuate the beauty and superior quality of these fine textiles. The result is a truly magnificent and inspirational exhibition that will educate and entertain thousands of visitors during its yearlong run at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture. If you are not already a Teec Nos Pos fan, well, it's just a matter of time.

Duane Anderson, Director, Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Santa Fe, New Mexico