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Donald C. & Elizabeth M. Dickinson Research Center
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| Navajo man sporting an ornamented belt
with several conchas (oval silver disks) and a buckle with a turquoise
inclusion. Silverwork, a relatively new craft among the Navajo, differs
from weaving in that it usually is not a family-taught craft. |
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| The Navajo treat their children, even
the little ones, as little people. Children learn to make their own
decisions early. Usually around the age of five, children begin sharing
in the tasks of caring for the sheep and are given lambs to begin
their flocks. |
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| Elderly Navajo man wearing straw hat,
velveteen shirt, concha belt and denim jeans. Obtaining silver ornaments
as loot, the Navajo derived the concha from their traditional enemies
the Ute, Kiowa, and Comanche. These Southern Plains tribes wore round
and oval plaques of German silver as hair decorations and as ornaments
strung around their waists. |
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| The closest and strongest of all relationships
in the Navajo social system is the mother-child bond. Motherhood in
Navajo culture is defined in terms of the reproduction and the sustenance
of life, and it is expressed in affection, care, kindness, and sharing. |
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| Navajo woman wearing a long, fluted
skirt and a velveteen blouse reflecting the Spanish influence. Adorning
her blouse are Winged Liberty Head dimes also known as Mercury dimes.
Minted between 1916 and 1945, each dime weighs 2.5 grams and is 90%
silver and 10% copper. Its designer, Adolph A. Weinman, intended the
wings surrounding her cap to symbolize liberty of thought. |
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