Hopi and Zuni Weavers Predominate

Most Pueblo textiles are woven by the Hopi or Zuni.  The other Peublos woven as well, but the bulk of 19th century Pueblo textiles come from these two tribes. Acoma weavers created wonderful mantas in the 19th century but I do not know of any Acoma serapes. Santo Domingo, Isleta and San Felipe wove mantas as well, but since the classic blue bordered manta was woven by many Pueblos, it’s hard to tell where any specific manta came from.

The Hopi are by far the most prolific weavers. These textiles tend to be banded with coarser wool and a lower weft and warp count than the 19th century Navajo textiles.   The exception to this would be the classic (1840 – 1870) Hopi mantas, shirts, and breach cloths which can be very finely woven. Unlike the Navajo, the Hopi have continued weaving with hand spun cotton well into the early 20th century. The maiden shawl, wedding blankets and rain sashes are all woven of cotton which would be hand spun in the 19th century turning to machine plied cotton in the later 19th century going forward into the 20th century.

Cotton As A Mainstay

This use of cotton by the Hopi is one of the traits of retaining the original weaving systems developed by the prehistoric and proto-historic weavers.  These early weavers only had cotton and yucca fibers to work with, at least until the Spanish arrived with churro sheep in the 16th century. To the degree that cotton has remained a primary weaving source attests to the resistance to adapt their culture to the changing, outside world.  This makes sense when you’re weaving for your own people and not for the outside world.

Wool and Dyes

Natural, hand spun wool is the main ingredient for weaving by the Pueblos.  These yarns come in a variety of colors from white to golden to grey, brown and black. The main dye used on the white yarns is indigo blue.  Indigo shows up likely in the early 18th century and becomes a major addition to serapes and mantas of the later 18th and 19th centuries.  As with the Navajo and the Hispanic weavers, churro wool was the wool used until the last quarter of the 19th century when other breeds were brought in by the US Military.  These outside sheep did not produce the wonderful fleece coming from the churro, but instead fleece that was more oily and kinky by nature.

Use Of Unravelled Cochineal Yarns

The Puelbos also unravelled cloth like the Navajo did to add red and other colors to their classic blankets.  Most notable of these are the Acoma mantas with embroidered end panels in indigo blue and cochineal or lac dyed red yarns.   The early shirts, breach cloths and mantas of the Hopi and other Pueblos also used the cochineal dyed unravelled yarns.  The degree to which the red would be used in a Pueblo weaving is much less than typically found in Navajo classic weaving.

The Modern Era

Hopi and Pueblo weaving has survived into the contemporary era, with many young weavers creating both historical type textiles and as well modern textiles showing innovative ideas integrated within the ancient weaving system.

General Values For Pueblo Textiles

If we consider the classic era first, that being 1820 to 1870, and we compare it to Navajo blankets of the same era, the Pueblo blankets are more rare but not more expensive.  This, in part, is due to how restrained Pueblo blankets remained.  Their weavers (almost all men) did not graduate into a complex level of weaving and colors as the Navajo did.  Pueblo weavers remain mostly with the classic style of banding patterns and if any variations occur, it’s mostly in the use of bright red from the cochineal dyed bayeta.

A Few Notes On Values For Restored Blankets

It’s common for classic era blankets to have restoration.  It is rare, in fact, for there to be none at all.  Typically, the ends and sides are most damaged but the center can be full of holes as well.  The pulling of the blanket around one’s back creates fatigue and wear to the center.  If the restoration is less than 10% and is very well done then there is little loss in value compared to a blanket with no restoration.  Restoration over 10% can begin to weaken the value, particularly if this restoration is evident. Older restoration often fades and looks different than the rest of the original yarn.  However, auction results show that on the exceptional blankets with evident restoration, values can still hold strong.  That being said, a heavily restored blanket executed poorly can severely reduce the value to more than 50%.

I am restoring my pieces less over time, especially if the wear appears to come from honest use instead of bug damage. Honest wear contributes a soulfulness to the blanket that gets lost once one restores it and makes it perfect. My clients are increasingly interested in honest wear, and are happy to pay full value as it marks for them the authentic part of this weaving.

Values of Mantas

The most expensive, classic Pueblo weavings would be the Acoma mantas embroidered with unravelled bayeta in red cochineal or lac, as well indigo blue and sometimes indigo green.  The values for these mantas are typically over $100,000 and the best ones can go for $500,000.   Second in line would be the Zuni embroidered mantas, only done in natural twilled browns for the body and indigo blue for the embroidered upper and lower thin panels.  These mantas can vary in value from $25,000 to $50,000 depending on the quality of the weave and the period woven.  These were woven into the 1880s and these might be the lesser valued ones if the weaving and coloration is not fine or exceptional.

The least expensive mantas would be the all brown or black Pueblo mantas and these range from $500 to $3500.  Once the mantas have indigo blue in them, what we call Blue Bordered Mantas, typically found on the narrow upper and lower borders and the selvage cords, the values can increase from $4000 to $15,000 depending on the fineness of weave, the quality of the wool and the variations in colorations for both the brown and indigo yarns.

Hopi mantas of cotton can vary in value from $400 up to $34,000.  The lower end includes Hopi wedding mantas which are all cotton with no other colors.   The higher end would be the classic era Hopi maiden shawl with upper and lower bands of indigo twill (typically birds eye, but sometimes herring bone) and midway bands of unravelled bayeta of lac dye.  The same maiden shawls with cochineal dyed bayeta could range from $12,000 to $24,000.

Values of Pueblo Blankets And Serapes

Banded Pueblo blankets coming from Hopi, Zuni and other Pueblos during the classic era can have a range of values from $2500 to $35000.  These are the most common of the classic period Pueblos textiles. The lower end would be an average banded blanket with natural white, brown and minimal indigo blue dyed yarns. The higher value would typically include larger amounts of indigo dyed yarns and unravelled red cochineal or lac bayeta yarns.

Hopi weavers wove many blankets after WW I and these include maiden shawls, loin cloths, cape mantas, wedding mantas, etc.  These can vary in value from $250 to $2,500.

Values Of Pueblo Sashes

Sashes were woven by most all of the Pueblos but most are from Hopi and Zuni.  These sashes could be used as belts, as carriers for items, and with cradelboards to secure the baby or stabilize or decorate parts.  The values range from $200 to $5500.  The lower end would be more contemporary examples with no natural dyes.  The higher end would be a classic era sash with indigo dyes and unravelled cochineal or lac yarns.  The classic Hopi rain sash is typically all cotton and all natural white. These range from $250 for the later ones to $650 for the earlier ones.