Kuna Mola 1940s - Kit Kapp Collection - American Bald Eagle

Description

An image of an American Eagle with its wings spread wide adorns this mola. Most likely taken from an image seen on American currency, as the bald eagle is not native to Panama. A patriotic piece with a folk art vibe. This is an older mola most likely from the late 1940's, it is 16w x 13h.
The Kit Kapp Collection.
Kit Kapp was a cartographer who was hired to map the San Blas Islands in 1960. He quickly fell in love with the Kuna people and their art, and organized numerous lengthy expeditions to the islands over an 11 year period where he purchased thousands of molas and hundreds of Kuna nuchu carvings, as well as jewelry, basketry and other artifacts. In 1972 he published the seminal book
Mola Art of the San Blas Islands,
which is still one of the best reference books on the subject. Kit died in 2014. Between 1999 and 2016 we purchased the entire remainder of the Kapp Kuna collection.