A Diné (Navajo) weaver made this vibrant textile, known as an “eye dazzler” for its capacity to create optical illusions. The stair-stepped concentric diamond pattern is known as serrate (Spanish for “notched”). The 1882 arrival of the railroad to Diné lands in the southwestern United States ushered in a period of tremendous change. Many trading posts opened along the railroad route, and the owners of such establishments encouraged Diné weavers to abandon traditional aesthetics and instead produce work whose patterns, colors, and sizes appealed to Euro-American buyers. Synthetically dyed commercial yarns, as seen in this eye dazzler, yielded brighter colors than handspun and naturally dyed yarns. Reflecting this moment of artistic experimentation with a new fiber, these vivid colors also heighten the contrast and sense of movement generated by the textile’s animated design.