Ganado & Klagetoh Navajo Rugs — Iconic Diamond Weavings in Ganado Red & Grey

When most people picture a Navajo rug, they are picturing a Ganado or Klagetoh — the bold central diamond, the strong geometric border, the deep Ganado red or the cool natural grey of the Klagetoh background. These are the rugs that defined Navajo weaving for the American market, and The Gordon Collection has been acquiring museum-quality examples of both styles since 1973.

The story begins in the late 1800s, when Navajo weaving was undergoing a profound shift — from wearing blankets to floor rugs — driven in large part by one of the great figures in Southwest trading history: Juan Lorenzo Hubbell. From his post at Ganado, Arizona, Hubbell and fellow trader C.N. Cotton recognized that the growing American market, newly connected to the Southwest by rail, wanted something specific: a bordered, floor-weight textile that could hold its own against the Oriental rugs fashionable in Eastern homes. At the same time, the Arts and Crafts movement was creating a new class of buyer — design-conscious households looking for authentic handcraft as a counterpoint to mass production — and Navajo weavings became the centerpiece of dedicated "Indian Rooms" across the country.

Hubbell directed his weavers toward a central diamond design with a bold geometric border, specifying the deep crimson that became known as "Ganado Red" for the red-background style, and allowing the natural grey homespun wool to anchor the cooler, equally striking Klagetoh variation. The Ganado Trading Post became the primary supplier to the Fred Harvey Company, whose Indian stores along the Santa Fe Railroad brought these textiles to national prominence — making the Ganado and Klagetoh the most recognized Navajo rug styles in history.

The Gordon Collection offers both vintage and contemporary Ganado and Klagetoh weavings, each hand-selected for quality of weave, integrity of design, and strength of color. Our Telluride gallery holds a more extensive selection than what appears online — contact us for additional photographs, dimensions, or condition details on any specific piece.