Bidspirit auction | Guna Mola Panel Four Animal

Guna Mola Panel Four Animal Spirit Masks - Panama (Guna Yala), circa 1970s 14.25 × 17.5 inches Richly worked reverse appliqué, appliqué, and hand embroidery mola panel presenting four animal spirit masks arranged in a symmetrical quadrant composition on a red ground, each contained within a rounded rectangular frame of concentric multicolor outlines. Each mask is individually rendered with its own distinctive interior palette and detail treatment — no two are identical — yet all share the characteristic structure of the Guna animal face: rounded eye forms, a prominent nose with scroll whiskers, bared teeth in white embroidery, and flanking crescent elements at the temples. A small four-lobed floral or cross motif in dark green marks the center point of the composition where the four frames converge. The interstices between the rounded frames are populated with teardrop and oval filler motifs in multicolor concentric outlines, animating the red ground throughout. Executed in three layers of dark red, yellow, and red cotton, with extensive embroidered detailing in yellow, green, blue, pink, white, and purple. Multicolor dash-work fills the lateral margins. Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection.