Taos Trading Post includes written assurance of genuineness with every Navajo rug we sell, in the form of our Navajo Native American Indian Certificate of Authenticity. In recent years, it has become customary to attach documentation to contemporary Navajo Indian rugs, in the form of a wired price tag bearing information about the weaver and her rug design. This practice is contributing to buyer confidence in establishing the Navajo Native American rugs authenticity. In addition to this customary price tag, we include our personalized Certificate of Authenticity, suitable for insurance and collection purposes. Our certificate is a professional document of authenticity, includes our Taos Trading Post logo and signature, and provides information about the Navajo weaver and rug design. The Indian Arts and Crafts Board advises dealers offer written certification that their Native American Indian rugs, arts or craft work were produced by tribal members or by certified Indian artisans in compliance with The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-644).
The Indian Arts and Crafts Board, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior, and was originally created by Congress to promote the economic development of Native American Indians and Alaska Natives through the expansion of the Indian arts and crafts market. A top priority of the Board is the implementation and enforcement of the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990, a truth-in-advertising law that provides criminal and civil penalties for marketing products as “Indian-made” when such products are not made by Indians, as defined by the Act.
The Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990 (P.L. 101-644) prohibits misrepresentation in marketing of Native American Indian rugs, art and craft products within the United States. It is illegal to offer or display for sale or sell Navajo rugs, or any art or craft product in a manner that falsely suggests it is Indian produced, an Indian product, or the product of a particular Indian or Indian tribe or Indian arts and crafts organization, resident within the United States. For a first time violation of the Act, an individual can face civil or criminal penalties up to a $250,000 fine or a 5-year prison term, or both. If a business violates the Act, it can face civil penalties or can be prosecuted and fined up to $1,000,000.
The law covers all Native American Indian rugs, blankets, and Indian-style traditional and contemporary arts and crafts produced after 1935. The Act broadly applies to the marketing of Native American rugs, blankets, arts and crafts by any person in the United States. Some traditional items frequently copied by non-Indians include Indian-style jewelry, pottery, baskets, carved stone fetishes, Navajo Native American Indian rugs, Native American blankets, kachina dolls, and clothing.
All products must be marketed truthfully regarding the Native American Indian heritage and tribal affiliation of the producers, so as not to mislead the consumer. It is illegal to market Indian rugs, blankets, weavings, or art or craft items as Native American Navajo Indian rugs, blankets, weavings, or Native American Navajo Indian art and craft; if a Navajo tribe member, or certified Navajo Indian artisan, did not actually create the rug, blanket, weaving, art or craft item.
