The Kuna Culture
Kuna Indians
Kuna People
The Kuna People are people native to the Colombian/Panama region. Although the traditional term for them is Kuna, they are now legally recognized as Guna. In total there are about 50,000 Kuna Indians today. Among these people many different religions are practiced, such as, traditional Kuna religion, various Christian religions (including Baptist, Catholic,), and Latter-Day Saint (Mormon). The Kuna People are most notorious for what is known for their bright molas, a colorful textile art form made with the techniques of appliqué and reverse appliqué. Mola panels are used to make the blouses of the Kuna women's national dress, which is worn daily by many Kuna women. Mola means "clothing" in the Kuna language. The reason Molas are such a big thing in this particular culture is because most of the Guna culture economy depends on agriculture, fishing, and the manufacturing of clothing.
Mola Art
The Mola Blouse
Mola Blouses are very popular within the Kuna Indian Culture. It's viewed as a major art form. Mola originated from women painting geometric designs on there body ; later down the road in the designs were woven with cotton and other materials brought from Europe by Panama settlers. The full costume traditionally includes a patterned wrapped skirt, a red and yellow headscarf, arm and leg beads, a gold nose ring and earrings in addition to the mola blouse. Mola Blouse is a blouse commonly worn by the women of Panama City/San Blas Islands. Of course it can be found elsewhere but it is most popular in this region. A Mola Blouse is worn as an everyday item. It can be worn for special occasions. The average price of a mola is about $18.00. This can vary depending on your location.
Works Cited
“Kuna Women.” CocoaWell. CocoaWell, 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015. <http://www.cocoawell.com/about/kuna-people/>.
“Mola Art.” Mola Art & Craft. N.p., 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015. <http://www.molaartandcraft.com/links.php?27219>.
“Mola Blouse.” Natural History. N.p., 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015. <http://natural-history.uoregon.edu/collections/web-galleries/kuna-molas>.
WikiPedia. WikiPedia, 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015. <http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mola_(art_form)>.
WikiPedia. WikiPedia, 2015. Web. 30 Apr. 2015. <http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuna_people>.