Dig It - 1/2/25
Now Seekers I love turquoise, and this ketoh (the Navajo word for bow guards) has stones in spades! The stamp work and stamped designs have an early feel, but the big stones are professionally cut, so my guess is that it dates more to the 1920s. Another guess, and there is no way to prove it, is that the ketoh may be Pueblo. I’ve seen more bow guards that feature large turquoise stones at Pueblo dances, especially at Zuni, than I have at Navajo ceremonies. In fairness, I have been to many more Pueblo dances than Navajo ceremonies. Oh well, not very scientific.
Bow guards were originally worn to protect the archer’s wrist from the snap of the bowstring. Today they are worn on ceremonial occasions as a remembrance of days past. The bottom line, Seekers, is that this is a hell of a Bow Guard, and it is for sale. Lonesome