Molas of the Kuna People

The women of the Kuna people, who live in the San Blas Archipelago off the northeastern coast of Panama, have an unusual way of expressing their religious beliefs. They witness to them on hand-stitched, rectangular panels of layered cotton cloth, attached to the front and back of their blouses. These decorative faith and fashion statements, known as molas (the Kuna word for “shirt” or “clothes”), intertwine brilliantly colored geometric patterns with imagery drawn from nature, native folklore, and Bible stories.

Anthropologists trace the origins of mola art back to the elaborate designs Kuna women once painted on their bodies. When Spanish colonizers and missionaries compelled them to wear clothes, they simply transposed these decorative motifs onto fabric.

Molas are made through a complicated process of reverse applique stitching. From two to seven layers of different colored cotton cloth are basted together to form a mola panel. Kuna sewers first make a pencil design on the top layer of cloth. Then, using a finely pointed pair of scissors, they snip through the fabric pieces to reveal the colors they want to be seen from the layers underneath. The rough edges of the cloth holes are notched, folded under, and closed off with a hemming stitch. The largest areas of the design are usually cut away from the upper layers of cloth. Sometimes, new colors are added by sewing in separate patches of fabric.

Well-intentioned Peace Corps workers brought in treadle machines, so the Kuna people could make more molas for the tourist trade--with an inevitable drop in quality. The most prized molas are panels, hand-stitched in the time-honored way, which have actually been worn on blouses. Although mola-making dates back no more than 170 years, it has become a focus of Kuna ethnic pride. When Panamanian authorities tried to pressure the San Blas islanders to abandon their traditions and wear modern dress, they rebelled in 1925 and eventually won home-rule.

The Kuna molas in my collection display a curious mix of conservative Protestant and Pentecostal motifs, such as the cross with two open Bibles in Christ, the Only Hope, traditional Roman Catholic imagery, depicting the Passion of Christ like The Sixth Station of the Cross, and unusual interpretations of Christian lore such as Saint Francis with the bird on his shoulder, beside three crosses and four angelic creatures. Jesus & the Woman at the Well holds the unique distinction of having been made by a male mola-stitcher named Prado.

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Descent of the Holy Spirit
Descent of the Holy Spirit
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
Blouse (44 x 82 cm.); panel (30 x 38 cm.)

Descent of the Holy Spirit

Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden
Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
36 x 41 cm.

Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden

Noah & the Ark
Noah & the Ark
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
28 x 38 cm.

Noah & the Ark

The  Rescue of Baby Moses
The Rescue of Baby Moses
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
35.5 x 43 cm.

The Rescue of Baby Moses

Moses Parts the Red Sea
Moses Parts the Red Sea
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30.5 x 38 cm.

Moses Parts the Red Sea

Moses Receives the Ten Commandments
Moses Receives the Ten Commandments
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
31 x 38 cm.

Moses Receives the Ten Commandments

The Ark of the Covenant
The Ark of the Covenant
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
33 x 41.5 cm.

The Ark of the Covenant

David Kills Goliath
David Kills Goliath
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
35.5 x 45 cm.

David Kills Goliath

King Solomon
King Solomon
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
38 x 43 cm.

King Solomon

The Wisdom of Solomon
The Wisdom of Solomon
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
36 x 43 cm.

The Wisdom of Solomon

Jonah and the Great Fish
Jonah and the Great Fish
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
28.5 x 42 cm.

Jonah and the Great Fish

Jonah & the Whale
Jonah & the Whale
Uknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
28 x 43 cm.

Jonah & the Whale

Holy Mary Our Mother
Holy Mary Our Mother
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
29 x 37 cm.

Holy Mary Our Mother

immaculate Heart of Mary
immaculate Heart of Mary
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30.5 x 41 cm.

immaculate Heart of Mary

The Holy Family
The Holy Family
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
26 x 39 cm.

The Holy Family

The Nativity
The Nativity
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
26 x 39 cm.

The Nativity

Nativity with Cat
Nativity with Cat
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
35 x 40 cm.

Nativity with Cat

The Nativity
The Nativity
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
27 x 31 cm.

The Nativity

The Flight Into Egypt
The Flight Into Egypt
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
27 x 39 cm.

The Flight Into Egypt

The Calling of the Apostle Peter
The Calling of the Apostle Peter
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
36 x 41 cm.

The Calling of the Apostle Peter

Jesus & the Woman at the Well
Jesus & the Woman at the Well
Prado
Reverse applique stitching
28 x 37 cm.

Jesus & the Woman at the Well

Jesus in the Garden
Jesus in the Garden
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
26 x 38 cm.

Jesus in the Garden

Christ Carrying the Cross
Christ Carrying the Cross
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
33.5 x 39 cm.

Christ Carrying the Cross

The Sixth Station of the Cross
The Sixth Station of the Cross
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30 x 43 cm.

The Sixth Station of the Cross

Crucifixion I
Crucifixion I
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
28 x 37 cm.

Crucifixion I

The Crucifiixion II
The Crucifiixion II
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30 x 40 cm.

The Crucifiixion II

The Crucifixion III
The Crucifixion III
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30 x 44 cm.

The Crucifixion III

The Crucifixion IV
The Crucifixion IV
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
35 x 44 cm.

The Crucifixion IV

The Crucifixion V
The Crucifixion V
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30 x 44.5 cm.

The Crucifixion V

The Triumphant Christ
The Triumphant Christ
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
27 x 35 cm.

The Triumphant Christ

The Good Shepherd
The Good Shepherd
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
33 x 43 cm.

The Good Shepherd

Saint Francis
Saint Francis
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
29 x 36 cm.

Saint Francis

Two Angels
Two Angels
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
29 x 38 cm.

Two Angels

Guardian Angel
Guardian Angel
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
31 x 43 cm.

Guardian Angel

Praying Angel
Praying Angel
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
29 x 36 cm.

Praying Angel

Cross & Fishes
Cross & Fishes
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
27 x 28 cm.

Cross & Fishes

Christ, the Only Hope
Christ, the Only Hope
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
28 x 37 cm.

Christ, the Only Hope

Holiness Church
Holiness Church
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
30 x 38 cm.

Holiness Church

Holy Bible
Holy Bible
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
26.5 x 32.5 cm.

Holy Bible

2 Thessalonians 3:1
2 Thessalonians 3:1
Unknown Kuna Artist
Reverse applique stitching
32 x 41 cm.

2 Thessalonians 3:1

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