Washington Matthews (1843-1905), an army major and surgeon, was conversant in Navajo and was one of the earliest and best Anglo recorders of Navajo culture.
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Description
List of Illustrations Alphabet A Note on Modern Orthography, by Robert Young Foreword by John Farella Preface Part I. General Observations and Elements of the Ceremony Part II. Rites in Detail Part III. Myths Part IV. Texts and Translations Notes Index
"A comprehensive study of the ritual that utilizes songs, sand paintings and masks, among other symbols. Exhaustive. This is a book for Native Americana scholars and those with a deep and abiding curiosity about a culture that is not easily understood."--New Mexico Book League "An important contribution to the understanding of cultural contact, the discipline of anthropology, and the debate over American Indians and cultural/intellectual property."--New Mexico Historical Review "Massively detailed. Based on eight years of careful and respectful observation, it remains, almost a century after its original publication, one of the seminal studies of Navajo religious practices."--The Journal of Arizona History