The Parker & Neal Mola Collection - Part 1
Lot 266:
Description
Panama (Guna Yala), circa 1960s
16 × 18 inches
Boldly worked reverse appliqué mola panel depicting the Crucifixion, the central figure rendered in dark charcoal-black with green outlines and multicolored interior bar detailing — pink, green, and yellow — the body elongated with hands extending to yellow-tipped fingers. The head is surmounted by a dramatic radiating solar crown of white-outlined spikes, the face rendered with white-stitched eyes and a faint smile, conveying an otherworldly serenity distinctly filtered through the Guna visual imagination. The cross is constructed in multiple concentric outlines of magenta, pink, orange, and yellow set against the deep burgundy ground, its vertical member filled with dense horizontal striping. Flanking the cross in the lower register, four attendant figures occupy paired side panels: at left, two worshippers outlined in blue and pink with dot-embroidered bodies; at right, a haloed standing figure accompanied by a seated form in yellow. The upper register features six framed panels each containing multicolored X-cross motifs. A rick-rack border in green with blue and black striped bands finishes the top edge. Executed in five layers of orange, burgundy, red, and black cotton, with extensive supplemental appliqué and hand embroidery throughout.
Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection.
Condition report:
Minor wear and fading consistent with age. In house Flat Rate US Shipping of $15 for 1 -10 molas, $5 each additional 10 molas. Insurance is additional and required.
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