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Mola : Pterosaur Eating Person

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
Washington, DC, United States

The mola is an art form that is part of the traditional women's clothing of the Kuna, an indigenous people from Panama and Colombia. This Mola panel is made with cotton fabric and handsewn with reverse applique. It has a red background with multi-colored design of a pterosaur, pterodactyl, or very large bird eating a person, with another pterosaur and two people on either side.

This is possibly inspired by one of the popular Hollywood movies of the day, like "One Million Years B.C." (1966) or "The Valley of Gwangi" (1969), which include pteranodon attacks.

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  • Title: Mola : Pterosaur Eating Person
  • Location: San Blas Islands, Panama, Central America
  • Physical Dimensions: L: 2cm W: 34.2cm
  • Type: Mola
  • Rights: This image was obtained from the Smithsonian Institution. The image or its contents may be protected by international copyright laws. http://www.si.edu/termsofuse
  • External Link: View this object record in the Smithsonian Institution Collections Search Center
  • Medium: Cotton fabric, applique
  • USNM Catalog Number(s): E433511
  • Photo Credit: Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
  • Field: Ethnology
  • Date Collected: 1964
Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

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