Guna Mola Panel with "En Sacro Pecuario" Inscription

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The Parker & Neal Mola Collection - Part 1

By Dana Auctions LLC

May 16, 2026

Set Reminder 2026-05-16 11:00:00 2026-05-16 11:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : The Parker & Neal Mola Collection - Part 1 https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/dana-auctions-llc/the-parker-neal-mola-collection---part-1-23111
The Parker-Neal Mola Collection Auction on May 16 presents a compelling selection of molas drawn from the renowned collection of Ann Parker and Avon Neal, co-authors of Molas: Folk Art of the Cuna Indians. This first offering has been thoughtfully curated to highlight some of the most interesting and visually striking examples from their extensive holdings. Dana Auctions LLC dana@danaauctions.com

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• Lot Description
  Panama (Guna Yala), circa 1970s 15.25 × 17.75 inches A striking mola panel worked in three layers of reverse appliqué, appliqué, and embroidery featuring a bold text inscription "EN SACRO PECUARIO" (Sacred Livestock) paired with a commanding devil or demon figure holding a ceremonial staff. The composition represents a fascinating intersection of Christian religious imagery, agricultural themes, and traditional Guna supernatural iconography, demonstrating the complex cultural syncretism that characterizes mid-to-late 20th century Guna textile art. The text "EN SACRO PECUARIO" dominates the upper register, rendered in large appliqué letterforms, each letter outlined in a different vibrant color—yellow, orange, white, pink, blue, green—creating a carnival-like or festival atmosphere. The Spanish phrase translates approximately as "In Sacred Livestock" or "Sacred Cattle," suggesting possible references to agricultural celebrations, religious blessing ceremonies for animals, or satirical commentary on the intersection of commerce and spirituality. The playful, almost circus-style lettering treatment suggests the maker approached this religious-agricultural theme with humor and creative license. The central figure is rendered as a frontal, symmetrical devil or demon wearing an elaborate crown or headdress. The head features a rounded, cloud-like or hat-shaped crown in deep red with white embroidered details suggesting decorative elements or text. The face is executed in bright magenta-pink with white appliqué eyes, a prominent black nose, and exposed white teeth creating a grinning or grimacing expression. The figure's aggressive dental display and mask-like features give it an apotropaic quality, suggesting it may serve protective or warning functions related to agricultural prosperity or spiritual guardianship of livestock. The body is completely filled with dense embroidery in multicolored dots creating a textural field across the torso, arms, and legs. The figure holds a long ceremonial staff or wand in the left hand, rendered in bright green with white floral or star embroidery, possibly representing a ritual implement used in blessing ceremonies or a visual reference to Western depictions of the devil's staff or pitchfork transformed into Guna decorative vocabulary. The torso contains a grid or calendar-like element with multicolored squares, possibly referencing agricultural cycles, market days, or ceremonial schedules related to livestock management. Surrounding the central figure are numerous appliqué elements including heart shapes, stylized floral forms with polka-dot fill patterns, and vertical line elements in yellow suggesting an activated, celebratory field. These decorative elements create visual density while maintaining clear figure-ground relationships. The overall composition demonstrates confident use of scale, with the oversized text and figure creating immediate visual impact. The three-layer construction creates subtle depth through color reveals, particularly visible in the letterforms and the figure's limbs. Extensive embroidery work throughout demonstrates skill with surface decoration, with multicolored running stitch creating dense textural patterns that fill virtually every element. The exuberant color palette—red, orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, magenta, and white—reinforces the festive, celebratory character of the composition. This piece exemplifies an important but understudied genre of Guna mola art that engages with Christian religious themes, agricultural life, and economic activities through the distinctive lens of Guna visual culture. The transformation of Spanish religious and agricultural vocabulary into bold textile statement—complete with a demon guardian figure—creates a unique cultural document that resists simple categorization as either sacred or secular, sincere or satirical. Worked on deep red cotton ground with layers in black, orange, yellow, green, pink, blue, magenta, and white. Three layers with exceptionally dense hand-stitching and embroidery throughout. Complex letterform cutwork and figure contours. Extensive multicolored embroidery creating surface texture and decorative fill. Strong compositional control integrating text and figural elements. Single panel on red cotton ground with black backing visible. This piece exemplifies the documentary, celebratory, and potentially satirical functions of Guna mola art, demonstrating the creative synthesis of Christian, agricultural, and indigenous spiritual vocabularies into a distinctively Guna visual statement. Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection

  Condition

  Minor wear consistent with age and a small spot. 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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