A Long Necked Bird Out Wandering Kuna Mola

A Long Necked Bird Out Wandering Mola is a hand sewn textile by a Guna (Kuna) artisan in Panama. A duckling stretches its long neck and takes a slow step across the panel, its head speckled with fine stitching and blocks of color set around it like windows. It looks a touch lost, and you may feel the urge to point it home. At 16 inches wide and 11 inches high, it fills a medium frame nicely in a hallway or a nursery. It is sweet in a child's bedroom or a reading nook.

Molas are built by stacking several layers of colored cotton, then cutting down through one layer at a time so the colors underneath show through, and turning every raw edge under and stitching it closed by hand. The technique is called reverse appliqué, and a good panel is judged by how fine the stitches are and how many layers deep the cutting goes. This one came from Guna Yala, the San Blas islands off Panama's Caribbean coast, where the designs draw on the birds, fish, plants and geometric patterns of the islands and rainforest. It is ready to frame, mount, or sew into a pillow or a quilt panel, and no two are ever alike.

Founded in 1991, TraderBrock celebrates the handcraft of Latin America's indigenous peoples. Every piece comes from Guna, Wounaan and Emberá artisans we know by name, and all profits are reinvested in their communities for education, tools and the teaching of ancestral techniques. Buying from TraderBrock helps keep their culture and their traditions alive.

Width: 16"
Height: 11"
SKU: PM0444T