Bidspirit auction | Guna Mola Panel with Republican

Guna Mola Panel with Republican Party Insignia - Panama (Guna Yala), circa 1960s 16 x 20 inches Worked in three layers of reverse appliqué with appliqué and embroidery accents on a red ground. Political composition centering on a large oval medallion enclosing a stylized deer with branching antlers, surrounded by scattered polychrome triangle motifs. Concentric bands of text in appliquéd polychrome letters read ”PARTIDO NUEVO REPUBLICANO” with additional inscriptions including the name ”BAZAN,” referencing the Panamanian Republican party. Banner scroll forms flank the medallion at left and right, framed in stepped geometric borders. The surrounding field is densely filled with polychrome triangle and four-pointed star motifs. Consistent hand-stitching and embroidery accents throughout. A notable example of political iconography adapted into the traditional mola format. A similar photo of this mola can be found on page 208 of MOLAS Folk Art of the Cuna Indians by Parker and Neal. Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection.