Central America, Panama, San Blas Islands, ca. early 20th century CE. A special, older example of this highly developed folk art form, coming from the world's finest collection of molas, depicting a very rare design comprised of a pair of architectural facades belonging to sacred structures with cupolas. A meticulously crafted, multi-layered textile of a marvelous variety of hues - red, blue, green, purple, pink, yellow, and black on an orange ground. Surrounded by lush emerald green trees and foliage in the jungles, sapphire blue skies, and the cool teal ocean, Kuna women have traditionally taken their cues from the symphony of bright colors found in nature. Furthermore, their iconography is also usually inspired by nature and its myriad flora and fauna. This piece is different, however, in that it depicts architectural elements. What's more, most Kuna shelters are simple thatched domed structures built on stilts over coastal marshes; the architecture represented here, given its elaborately detailed facades, departs from that vernacular style. An incredibly rare example of this Panamanian folk art form depicting hallowed, temple-like edifices. Size: 22" W x 15.5" H (55.9 cm x 39.4 cm)

We are honored to present this mola from the important Kit Kapp collection. According to Tom Hannaher in his text from a debut exhibition of Kuna Molas from the Kit Kapp collection, "Between 1963 and 1971, Kitt Kapp and his wife Valerie conducted over 35 expeditions of the San Blas Islands, as well as remote Kuna villages in Colombia and along the Bayano River in the Darien Peninsula of Panama. Kit's book, Mola Art of the San Blas Islands, was one of the first publications to treat molas as an art form." (Molas from the Collection of Kit Kapp," by Tom Hannaher, 2008)

The folk craft of creating molas began about 125 years ago when the Kunas moved from the mainland to the islands. In their new environment, cooler nights necessitated warmer clothing. At first, women created blouses adorned with simple applique borders, but as time went on, they increased the scale of the decorative areas until the entire front and back panels were comprised of multi-layered, quilted textile designs. This distinctive art form has evolved into a tradition of exceptionally fine needlework and meaningful symbolism.

Provenance: Ex-Kit Kapp collection formed in the very early 1970's. Mr. Katt acquired the world's largest and best documented collection of Molas, with numerous published examples in his book entitled "Mola Art" (1972) and Parker and Neal's "Molas: Folk Art of the Cuna Indians" (Clarkson N. Potter, Inc., a division of Crown Publishing, 1977).

All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.

We ship worldwide to most countries and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.

#117662

One small area of minor separation. A bit of expected fading and fraying at peripheries. Overall excellent.