Guna Mola Panel with Merlion and Small Bird

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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 16 × 18.75 inches A striking mola panel worked in 3 layers with reverse appliqué, appliqué, and embroidery depicting a Merlion — a lion-fish hybrid — as the dominant figure, accompanied by a small bird, on a red-crimson ground. The merlion is a fantastical composite creature that reflects the Guna practice of absorbing foreign imagery and reinterpreting it through traditional textile art, likely inspired by commercial labels, heraldic emblems, or packaging imagery encountered through trade. The lion's head occupies the right side of the composition — a squared face set against white with a serrated zigzag border, featuring heavy brows, rectangular eyes, a T-shaped yellow nose, curled embroidered mustache and whisker elements in teal and yellow, and a wide grinning mouth displaying teeth in white and green. The head is encircled by a magnificent mane of radiating yellow petal-like forms against a dark ground, the whole enclosed within a rounded frame outlined in orange and red. From the lion's head, the creature's body transitions into an elaborate fish form extending across the upper left of the composition. The fish body is rendered in green with concentric outlines in black and yellow, featuring a red head area with a prominent white eye surrounded by embroidered spiral details, a defined mouth, and multicolored striped fins and tail sections in pink, green, blue, and yellow. The body is filled with dense parallel hash marks and the lower appendages are individually articulated in blue and pink. A small bird appears within the composition, adding a secondary zoological element to the scene. Across the lower field, the merlion's sinuous body continues as segmented chain-like bands that weave through the composition. Each segment is individually outlined in a different color — blue, orange, pink, yellow, green, white, purple — creating a striking multicolored effect against the dark forms. These segmented bands cross and intertwine, filling the lower register with dynamic movement suggesting the creature's powerful aquatic tail and body. The background is densely filled throughout with parallel hash marks in varied color sequences — yellow on red, orange on crimson, pink on magenta, blue on red, and green on dark grounds — creating distinct tonal zones across the panel. Worked on red-crimson cotton ground with layers in black, yellow, orange, green, blue, pink, magenta, purple, teal, and white. Fine hand-stitching throughout with consistent stitch density. Dense, fully filled composition with sophisticated cutwork featuring complex curves around the fish body, nested shapes in the lion head, and elaborate segmented body rendering. Strong compositional movement carries the eye from the radiating mane through the arcing fish form and down through the coiling lower body. Single panel on red-crimson cotton ground with dark backing visible on the reverse. This piece exemplifies the Guna tradition of reinterpreting foreign heraldic and commercial imagery — the merlion motif likely derived from imported product labels or emblems — transforming it into a powerful mythological hybrid rendered with exceptional visual richness and technical control. Provenance: From the Parker & Neal Collection

  Condition

  Minor wear consistent with age. Vibrant color. 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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