Navajo Storm Pattern Rugs — J.B. Moore's Catalogue Design

The Storm Pattern is one of the most visually powerful and symbolically layered designs in all of Navajo weaving — and its origin story is unlike any other regional style. The Gordon Collection has carried exceptional Storm Pattern weavings for over 50 years, from contemporary interpretations to early pieces whose design lineage traces directly to a single mail-order catalog sent to the eastern United States in 1903.

The story begins at the Crystal Trading Post in New Mexico, where trader J.B. Moore operated from 1896 to 1911. Recognizing that the market for Navajo wearing blankets was collapsing — the railroad had brought ready-made clothing and cheap machine-woven blankets within reach — Moore understood that the entire tradition of Navajo weaving needed a new commercial foundation to survive. His solution was unprecedented: he commissioned illustrations of designs he considered marketable, incorporating Persian and Oriental rug elements alongside indigenous Navajo motifs, and published them in a mail-order catalog distributed across the eastern United States in 1903 and again in 1911. It was the first Navajo rug catalogue in history, and it saved an art form.

The Storm Pattern appears in Moore's 1911 catalogue — and his own notes reveal how unusual the design was even then. Moore wrote that the pattern was rooted in Navajo mythology and that "for superstitious reasons" only one family or clan would weave it. Early pieces conforming precisely to Moore's catalogue plates are known among collectors as plate rugs and are among the most sought-after of all Crystal-area weavings.

The design's structure is immediately recognizable: a strong central rectangle — representing the center of the universe, the Navajo hogan, or the Lake of Emergence depending on interpretation — connected by zigzag lightning bolts to four corner rectangles symbolizing the Navajo's four sacred mountains. Water bugs, whirling logs, arrows, and cloud elements appear throughout, each carrying its own layered meaning from Navajo cosmology. Unlike most regional styles, the Storm Pattern places no restrictions on color — it has been woven in every palette from classic red and black to contemporary vegetal pastels — which gives each piece a distinct character while the underlying composition remains unmistakable.

The Gordon Collection carries both vintage and contemporary Storm Pattern weavings. Our Telluride gallery holds additional inventory not listed online — contact us for condition reports, provenance details, and photographs of any specific piece.