A History of Molas
by Patricia Cummings
photos by James Cummings
File last updated on October 28, 2009
First a note: The Indians who make these molas are referred to, in print, as Kuna Indians, or Cuna Indians. The word "Cuna" seems to be a more likely way for a Spanish-speaking person to spell the word. Both spellings are interchangeable. Additionally, the plural of mola is molas, unless you are reading a book printed in Germany, in which case, the plural is sometimes spelled "Molakana." These issues are mentioned so that the reader will be aware of differences.
What is a Mola?
The answer is simple. Molas are colorful panels that include various types of appliqué and often have added embroidery. Once assembled, they are placed on both the lower front and lower back of a blouse. These blouses are only part of the daily attire worn by the Kuna Indian women of Central America. The mola blouses, and mola panels, in and of themselves, have come to be prized collectibles among textile enthusiasts and museums.
The dress of Kuna women has come to symbolize their “Kunaness,” a term coined by ethnographer Michel Perrin in his book, Magnificent Molas, (Flammarion). In addition to mola blouses, women wear imported red and yellow head scarves, wrap around skirts that are often blue in color, gold nose rings and earrings, and rectangular units of decorative beads which encircle calves and forearms. In addition, a black stripe is painted on the nose and runs the full length of it. This practice is thought to enhance beauty, and is a reminder of the more extensive body painting practices of former times. Women sometimes paint their faces with a rouge made from achiote seeds. Mola making itself originated with the Kuna in the second half of the nineteenth century.
Origins of the Kuna People
The origin of the Kuna people is uncertain. They may be descendants of the Carib Indians of the area. According to Frederick W. Shaffer, some anthropologists believe the Kuna (Cuna) to have originated in Southeast Asia six thousand years ago.
Chocolate Mola
photo courtesy of eBay seller "traderbrock"
This chocolate color mola very much resembles a piece of Hmong embroidery in the collection of Sandra Munsey that was published in The Quilter magazine in the July 2009 issue.
The similarities between the needlework of the two cultures of the Kuna and the Hmong people of Southeast Asia is remarkable. Both groups of needleworkers employ channel appliqué, and their design motifs can have some symbolic meanings, express cultural identity, and are (now) used to earn income. Both societies have animistic beliefs in which every living entity and every inanimate objects possesses a spirit. In fact, they have so much in common, these two distinct but similar types of needlework are sometimes confused by the unknowing.
Medicine Men
Like the shamans of the Hmong people, the medicine men of the Kuna Indians employ chants, herbs and rituals to keep the spirits of the other world in line. In addition, the medicine men use carved uchus which are free-standing, carved figurines in the shape of men, women and animals. In addition, they grind up pelvic bones "to ensure easy childbirth." The information that I read was unclear as to what was done with the ground up substance.
Crab mola
photo courtesy of eBay seller "traderbrock"
Language and Habitat
Known as Kuna by everyone else, these Indians call themselves the tule people. Their language, tulekage, is derived from the Chibcha group of languages and was in place long before the occupation of the Spanish conquistadores more than five hundred years ago. In addition to occupying some of the 365 islands that form the Mulatas Archipelago, off the coast of Panama, the Kuna also inhabit rain forest land along a 140 mile stretch of Panama’s coast. Access to Panama’s mainland from the islands is limited to boat, canoe, or plane. Approximately one thousand Kunalive in Colombia.
Independence Day Mola features the date of November 3, 1903 when Panama severed ties with Colombia. photo courtesy of eBay seller "traderbrock"
Abandonment of Traditional Dress Urged
The year 1907 marked the beginning of pressure by outsiders for the Kuna to abandon their visible signs of tradition, and to become more “civilized.” In 1913, the conflict escalated when Miss Anna Coope, a Protestant missionary, arrived on Narganá Island. Her insistence that the women not wear their usual attire was a quest taken up by other missionaries.
Soon, government officials intervened and molas were confiscated by police forces kept on the islands. The Indians, who did not wish to be told how to dress, launched the bloody Tule Rebellion of 1925, during which all the whites present on their territory were either killed or expelled.
Since that time, the land of the Kuna has been a semi-autonomous territory of Panama. The Kuna are self-governing and their leaders convene daily in a congreso (meeting) to make decisions. The Kuna call their homeland Kuna Yala which means Kuna homeland. To the rest of the world, the area where they live is called the San Blas Islands or the Comarca de San Blas. Some islands have as few as fifty inhabitants while others accommodate more than one thousand people. Overcrowding is beginning to be problematic.
Molita = a small mola with less layers and embroidery. These small pieces are made by children just learning to make molas.
A Trip Back in Time
To visit the Kuna is to travel back in time. Surrounded by azure blue waters that cover coral reefs, and with swaying coconut palms in sight, one might think of this as an island paradise. While men are engaged in fishing or agricultural activities, women are responsible for the task of collecting fresh water daily from lakes and streams.
Some islands now have irrigation systems in place which result in fresh water being pumped in automatically. Most of the residents sleep in hammocks inside of thatched-roof houses made of upright canes. The women stitch molas at night by kerosene lamp. A few islands have a small generator to produce electricity. Molas have become a major source of revenue for the tourist trade, and so women are busy stitching up new ones in any spare moment.
Colorful Lion molita, photo courtesy of eBay seller "traderbrock"
Mola Wealth
In this matriarchal society where all property is passed down through the maternal side of the family, and where money is handled by women, girls learn to sew molas at six or seven years old. They continue stitching molas for a wedding trousseau and by the time they are of marriageable age, they have accumulated a dozen or more.
Closed Society
Traditionally, the Kuna forbid marriage outside their group. A xenophobic society ever since the visits of the Spanish conquistadores who treated them poorly, the Kuna only recently have allowed overnight stays on the islands. If ones does not mind a “no frills” approach to travel, there are now a few “hotels” on a few of the larger islands. Due to poor economic times, a number of Kuna men have migrated to the mainland to find wage labor. They always return, though, often within a few months time. The group known as the Mountain Kuna are an even more reclusive tribe. These Kuna live on the mainland and are not receptive to outside contact.
Occupations of Kuna Men
Many molas depict crab, lobster, fish, and turtles. Fishing is a very strong industry for Kuna men who have found a good market with mainlanders seafood delights. Agriculture also plays a significant role in the economy. Like the traditional ways of the Hmong people of Laos, the Kuna use a slash and burn method to clear jungle land on the mainland so that they may create garden areas to grow avocados, yucca, plantains, and bananas. Until recently, coconuts were grown on all of the uninhabited islands to sell to traders. Lately, this effort has become less lucrative due to a natural blight on the crop, and to diminished demand due to economic factors.
Eye-catching geometric mola panel. photo courtesy of "traderbrock"
Both Men and Women Stitch Molas
One percent of the Kuna population is albino, the highest rate of albinism in the world. Albino men stitch molas as a means of income, inasmuch as they must stay out of the sun. Reportedly, homosexual men also create molasfor sale. Medicine men (somehow) treat pregnant women with powdered charcoal to prevent albinism. Since this is a genetic trait, the treatment is of no avail.
Women usually sell their used or old molas which have been previously sewn into a blouse and may be faded or may have the usual bottom band still attached. Most collectors do not worry about this factor because it indicates authenticity. Special molas, reserved for personal use, are never sold. The tourist trade has encouraged many to engage in mola-making. Each mola panel takes approximately two months to stitch.
Unalike Pairs
Mola panels are made in pairs, although they are purposely not exactly alike. The Kuna believe that everything in the universe comes in pairs, but like man and woman, each is dissimilar. Molas themselves, which possess numerous layers of cloth, seem to be symbolically representative of the Kuna legends about how the earth was created in various colored layers.
An in-progress reproduction mola constructed by Patricia Cummings
This image is a reproduction in progress, sans all of the additional embroidery that will be added. I made this in order to more fully understand the process of mola-making. I intentionally included the original maker's "mistakes," just to see if I could. I started this in 2001 and did not have suitable (shiny) embroidery thread to do the surface embroidery that is included in the original.
How is a Mola Made?
The panels consist of layers of cotton fabric (usually solid colors). A mola begins life with two or three layers. Often, when the top layer of the fabric is slit, a small piece of colored cloth can be inserted. The edges on either side of the open space are turned under (call this reverse appliqué, if you wish), and they are tacked down with small, close, hand stitches. Contrary to popular belief, not every color seen in a mola represents a full layer of cloth. The channels formed by this type of work form the overall design shape. With the channel appliqué complete, conventional appliqué motifs and embroidery are very often added to the top layer.
Over time, the outside shape of molas has changed from a more upright configuration to a rectangular, oblong one. According to Caren Caraway in The Mola Design Book (Stemmer House, 1981), 16“ x 19” is the average mola size.
Can’t Stop at Just One
The first mola that I had ever seen was a gift from a dear friend. She was moving away and wanted to find a new home for it. The design of the mola is that of a mythical creature. The piece is nicely framed with a heavy burlap surround and she told me that it dates from the early twentieth century and was brought back here by missionaries. This piece became the starting point for a small collection!
Mythological mola, collection of Patricia Cummings
I could not resist two mola designs, one of turtles, and one of rabbits, in an antiques shop. Red, black, or orange are the colors most often selected for the top layer of a mola. Recently, I purchased a child’s mola blouse. Upon receiving it, the first thing I noticed about the blouse was its fancy fabric used for the yoke and sleeves. The seller explained that charities often donate fabrics to the Indians and they are quick to experiment and work with any fabric provided.
Mola that features four heads. Collection of Patricia Cummings.
photo by James Cummings
The most unusual mola I have ever seen is one that the seller nicknamed,
“Torment, Pity, Anguish, and Anxiety.” It depicts four black faces. The other molas I purchased on that particular day include one which features the Escudo, the Official Shield of Panama; a “Patriotic” mola with two Panamanian flags; a mola that says “Felis Navidad” (Merry Christmas spelled wrong in Spanish), and “Prospero Año” (prosperous year). In addition, I bought a Blue Toucan
mola, and a Sailfish mola.
Far Reaching Design Sources
The design motifs on the surface of molas are varied and many. The abundant bird life of the islands inspires many abstract depictions of birds in molas. Turkeys, doves, hawks, and storks are common. In the tropical climate inhabited by the Kuna Indians, snakes, frogs, and lizards abound and their images find their way onto molas. Butterflies are favored motifs and one has found his way onto the center of one of my geometric molas. Domestic animals are sometimes seen, and puppies in a basket seems to be one of the favored design motifs.
Ducks mola. courtesy of "traderbrock"
Company logos are borrowed from magazines left behind by tourists. Any topic is fair game. Common everyday objects such as arrows, gourds (calabashes), boats, anchors, plates, and jars are used as designs. Official seals, coats of arms, or warriors find their way onto the surface of some molas, as do Biblical depictions, and portrayals of sporting events, especially basketball and boxing. Geometric style molas and maze-like designs are considered to have been made at an earlier time and so are considered to be the most desirable by some collectors.
Celebrities or important people are sometimes the focal point. Among these have been such well-known individuals as Elvis, and John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jacqueline. The Kuna religion is called PAP IKALA and is based on stories that have been passed down orally through the generations. The effect of missionaries can be seen in the Noah's Ark depictions, and molas that represent the Creation story, St. Francis of Assisi, and Christ on the Cross.
Highly Collectible Art
In their tropical island environment of origin, molas do not last very long. They are stored by hanging them around the interior perimeter of the hut and the salty sea air eventually destroys them. For that reason, there are no very old “antique” molas in existence, that are still located on the islands.
Recently, molas have become highly collectible items for art connoisseurs the world over. Molas can be seen in some of the finest museums throughout the United States and Europe. The Smithsonian collection includes the thirty mola blouses that were collected between 1904-1908 by Eleanor Yorke Bell, the first person known to have photographed molas. (These can be seen online.) A photo of the oldest mola known to exist, one that Eleanor photographed, appears in the book Magnificent Molas, page 22.
Another early collector, Lady Richmond Brown, bought two hundred molas on the islands in 1922. Three-fourths of them are located in Great Britain’s Museum of Mankind. Museums in Germany, Sweden, and elsewhere in Europe have notable collections.
One very noteworthy collection in New England is located at the University of Connecticut, Storrs. Three hundred molas that were among the many more collected by Elisabeth Hans during her lifetime, were donated to the art department. We were lucky enough to have seen an outstanding exhibit which featured some of these works.
Catering to the Trade
The initial idea of marketing molas came from a Panamanian business owner in the 1950s. These days, mola making has been extended to include items found to be popular with tourists. These include potholders, bags, and eyeglass cases and more. Ever since the desirability of molas has increased and gained stature, there are silk screened tee shirts with mola designs available in mainland boutiques. ¡Molas! by Kate Mathews (Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 1998), introduces examples of very innovative design uses of the mola technique, rendered in both cloth and paper, by contemporary American artists.
Ever-Evolving Uses
Quilters today are finding new uses for molas. Small molas can be used as decorative patches on clothing. They can be joined vertically to create a bell pull. At a quilt show in Maine, there was an entire quilt composed of red molas. For such a quilt, one does not need to add the weight of a heavy batting. Simply add a backing after having sewn the molas together, and place the ties so that they are visible only from the back.
More often lately, American quilters are enjoying learning the techniques of mola construction. They are also using a mola as a starting point for making a wearable garment such as a vest, a jacket, the yoke of a dress, or perhaps, even a pocket. Molas are becoming more and more available in smaller sizes that are adaptable to some of the uses mentioned here.
Mola collecting is fun! Enjoy the hunt!
Click the link above to learn more about this unusual mola.
photo courtesy of "traderbrock"
Many thanks to Len B. better known as "traderbrock" on eBay for allowing us to publish some of his photos of molas here. I know from experience that this man is a friendly and dependable seller of molas, should you ever be in the market. Hundreds of his molas for sale can be found on eBay.
He even has framed molas for sale.
Resources for More Photos and Information
An article about molas was written by Patricia L. Cummings and published in The Quilter magazine, (NJ: All-American Crafts, Inc., November 2004).
Online site: William Benton Museum, University of Connecticut offers a lot of history information and photos of molas.
To see some "molitas" (small molas), visit this quilt show review file and scroll to the end.
Other Sites Online to see examples of molas
BOOKS
**Magnificent Molas: The Art of the Kuna Indians, Michel Perrin, (Flammarion). ISBN: 2-09013-674-7.
Mola Art from the San Blas Islands by Capt. Kit S. Kapp (North Bend, OH: K.S. Kapp Publications), 1985. Library of Congress #78-190738.
Mola Techniques for Today’s Quilters, Charlotte Patera (American
Quilter’s Society, 1995). ISBN: 0-89145-848-4.
Mola Designs, Frederick W. Shaffer (New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1982) ISBN: 0-486-24289-7
¡Molas! Patterns, Techniques, Projects for Colorful Appliqué!, Kate Mathews (Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 1998). ISBN: 1-57990-020-8.
Molas by Rhoda L. Auld (New York: Van Nostrand and Reinhold Company, 1980). ISBN: 0-442-20050-1.
The Hood Museum exhibited a small but representative selection of molas in 2008, one well worth viewing!
Another page about Molas: Molas and Their Makers
Also, go to our blog (link accessible on the home page) and use the key word, "molas," to find additional photo essays.
Copyright 2004-2009. Patricia L. Cummings, Quilter's Muse Publications, Concord, NH. Entire article and photos under copyright. Do not reproduce images or text. Questions? Comments? Write to: pat@quiltersmuse.com