Wedding Vase with Horned Toad Appliqués

Betty Manygoats, Wedding Vase with Horned Toad Appliqués, 1988, fired clay with piñon pitch, 23 x 11 ³⁄₈ x 11 ³⁄₈ in. (58.4 x 29.0 x 29.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Mrs. Gibson Fahnestock, 1997.124.162

Artwork Details

Title: Wedding Vase with Horned Toad Appliqués
Artist: Betty Manygoats
Date: 1988
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
/
Luce Foundation Center
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3rd Floor
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28B
Dimensions: 23 x 11 ³⁄₈ x 11 ³⁄₈ in. (58.4 x 29.0 x 29.0 cm)
Credit Line: Gift of Chuck and Jan Rosenak and museum purchase made possible by Mrs. Gibson Fahnestock
Mediums: clay
plant material
Mediums Description: fired clay with piñon pitch
Classifications: Decorative Arts
Subjects: Object — other — vase
Animal — amphibian — toad
Object Number: 1997.124.162
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1997.124.162

Artwork Description

This piece resembles a traditional Navajo wedding vase, which has two spouts joined by a handle to symbolize two lives coming together. Betty Manygoats started with this shape, then broke with Navajo tradition by covering the clay with Na'ash-'ii dich'izhii, or horned toads. In Navajo culture the horned toad symbolizes good health, strength, and protection.