Lot 42, Auction 4/12/2026: Published 19th C. Navajo Silver Spoon & Reference Book

$390.00

In stock

Native American, Navajo, Southwestern United States, ca. 1890s to 1910s CE; “Navajo Spoons: Indian Artistry and the Souvenir Trade, 1880-1940” by Cindra Kline (Santa Fe, NM: Museum of New Mexico Press, 2001), 128 pp. A compelling paired lot, this offering unites a hand-crafted Navajo silver spoon with the reference volume in which it is published, Cindra Kline’s “Navajo Spoons: Indian Artistry and the Souvenir Trade, 1880s-1940s” (Santa Fe, Museum of New Mexico Press, 2001). The spoon itself, illustrated on the cover of the book, reflects the ingenuity and adaptability of Dine silversmiths during the height of the Southwestern tourist trade, while the accompanying publication provides valuable scholarly context for its form and significance. Size of book: 8.1″ W x 9″ H (20.6 cm x 22.9 cm); of spoon: 4.2″ L x 0.9″ W (10.7 cm x 2.3 cm); silver quality: 91.2%; weight: 10.4 grams

Likely formed from melted or hammered silver coinage, the spoon exhibits a classic tapering handle and rounded bowl, both adorned with hand-stamped motifs including arrow designs and linear ornament. The surface bears the subtle irregularities of hand forging, a testament to its creation through traditional techniques rather than industrial manufacture.

Produced during the Fred Harvey era, when rail travel brought waves of Victorian tourists into the American Southwest, such spoons were created specifically for a growing market eager to acquire objects that embodied an idealized vision of Native American life. As Kline notes, the rise of tourism directly shaped Navajo silverwork, with artisans incorporating motifs that appealed to outside buyers rather than strictly reflecting traditional symbolism. These spoons were often displayed alongside textiles and other goods, bridging the line between functional object and souvenir.

This form traces its origins to the work of early Navajo silversmiths such as Chit-Chi, credited with producing some of the first decorative spoons before 1885. By the turn of the century, Navajo makers had refined their techniques, transitioning from hammered coin silver to more sophisticated materials and designs while maintaining hand-stamped decoration as a defining feature. Together, the spoon and its published reference create a particularly desirable pairing – an object and its documentation – offering both aesthetic appeal and scholarly validation within the broader narrative of Native American artistry and the evolution of the tourist trade in the American West.

This spoon has been published on the cover of “Navajo Spoons: Indian Artistry and the Souvenir Trade, 1880-1940” by Cindra Kline (Santa Fe, NM: Museum of New Mexico Press, 2001).

Condition: Book is pristine and brand new; still in original plastic shrink wrap. Some light surface wear to spoon, but, otherwise, intact and in excellent condition.

Provenance: private New York, New York, USA collection

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

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