To talk about the pollera and
write about it is in fact to talk about the
panamanian woman. And, indeed, there is a
lot to say about the panamanian woman, so
many beginnings and so many endings, but no
word, poem, song, verse, nor "saloma",
can equal what she is, what she feels, and
what inspires her, as does the panamanian
Pollera.
This merge of clothing and embroidering,
embroiders, folds, and forms, is the patrimony
of femenine spirit of a whole nation, a proud
manifest of a woman that gets so beautiful
that she fuses herself in the colors of the
mother country.
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Those who know and are the ancestral art
of its intricate making know that its beauty
enamors and to see a woman dressed in a pollera
is to be dominated by something without being
able to decipher what it is. It seems that
in the designs sawn by hand there are words
that only the soul understands, written in
the old language of romance and seduction,
jealously kept in a tradition that trascends
ages.
The pollera, the luxurious one, the one for
gala, the one that has made our country more
beautiful and has scratched the most important
halls in the world with silence of extraordinary
admiration; is complemented, nonetheless,
by other pieces that stand out the beauty
of the woman wearing it. A variety of jewels
and crowns that bring about the grace to our
women. the panamanian women.
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Among the most beautiful polleras, it is
important to mention the Pollera de gala Santeña,
because it is the most widely adopted design
nationally and it is one most use in Panama.
Richly made, its structure is composed of
two separated pieces: the shirt and polleron(big
pollera), both made from fine selections of
thread fabric and cotton..
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Whoever takes a look at it with detail
in mind, will be able to distinguish the patrons,
often with floral designs, sawn by hand over
the white background, the same way a delicate
piece of art is drawn over linen cloth. Looking
closer, one can admire the embroideries, made
by hand as well, and sawn with and impecable
care, and brought to artistic perfection rarely
seen on a traditional dress, recreating over
the linen cloth the fragile, beautiful and
elegant sensation that the woman shows over
its silloutte.
The woman is aldo adorned with gold jewels
and delicate garments over her head, completing
a unique and armonious outfit that stands
out for its beauty and originality.
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Better known as tembleques and peinetas,
these two elements, made by the agile and
artful hands or craftmen and craftwomen, help
stand out the facial characteristics of the
panamanian woman. Big eyes, full lips, and
a wide smile, trimmed eyebrows and long eyelashes,
dark skin, and a fresh look, that invites
and provokes in the dance with the movements
of the pollera, to come close to her and seduce
her. To see her going and move her silloutte
at the beat of the music and the Tipico
dances, that is quite an spectacle.
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About the jewelry that she carries, these
are so attractive, of luxurious and expensive
design, that anyone could say that the panamanian
woman dressed with a pollera is one of riches,
however, every piece, necklace, ring and peineta
forms a part of her legacy that is kept and
that will adorn the polleras of future generations.
Around this gold made jewelry, pearls, precious
stones and corals, there is a whole tradition
that rules how the must be worn.
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The feet of the dressed up
woman, are covered with shoes made from velvet,
and don't have heels. This shoes, back in
the times of the aristocracy, were adorned
with gold clasps and it holds onto the feet
with laces, and embroideries, making a contrast
with the beauty and richness of the gold jewelry
and the tipico dress.
The dresses also have different styles and
there is a great variety and tradition that
is respected and saved, while maintaining
the pure art of the making of the pollera.
In every detail of the embroideries and the
movement, the "empollerada" can
show the legacy of a proud Panama, rejoicing
its roots and traditions.
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According to the renown professor, Dora P.
de Zarate (q.e.p.d.), one of the foremost authorities
that the country has ever had regarding panamanian
folklore, in her book "La Pollera Panameña",
the amount of jewelry that accompany the Pollera
are numerous Here are the descriptions to some
of them. |
The woman’s head is decorated
with curved combs, decorated in gold filigree;
a main large tortoise shell comb decorated
with repoussé or engraved gold strips;
and small decorative gold square temple patches
(reminiscent of pain patches). Very elaborate
gold earrings of a great variety are also
worn. Around the combs on both sides and on
the back of the head, natural white carnations
are worn, or more commonly, delicate custom
pearl bead flower, butterfly, or dragonfly
shapes with gold or silver wire twists on
pins cover the hair, resulting in a beautiful,
elegant headdress.ver the head,
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Around the neck, a gold filigree choker
with small flower shapes, a slightly longer
black ribbon choker with a coin modal or a
golden cross. The main necklace is the long,
Flat Chain with flat intertwined links with
beautiful pendants that hangs around mid-chest
level. The Betwitching Chain, very similar
to the flat chain necklace, despite being
of a similar length, can be gathered in the
palm of the hand. The Solomon chain, made
of links in the shape of columns; the scapular
and the rosary, all delicate and made of gold,
also hang gracefully from the neck.
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As complementary jewelry, round gold buttons
fashioned after coins, or in the shape of a
half moon hold up the sides of the pollera skirt;
also, gold rose-shaped, or pearl and gold buttons
or brooches are used to hold up the sides of
the pollera petticoat. |
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