Senorita Panama organization revealed the official national costume of Miss Universe Panama 2020 Carmen Isabel Jaramillo for Miss Universe 2020 on 17th April 2021 via their official social media account. Abdul Habid Juliao Esturain and Róyer Pérez are the designers of the stunning costume that Carmen will don and parade at the stage of Miss Universe 2020 in May in the United States.
Abdul explained that the costume’s theme is ‘La Pinta and La Santa María’ and the costume is inspired by the history of the Isthmus of Panama. He further explained that the costume has been designed to showcase the 500 years old history of legends, culture, and tradition of Panama.
The designer framed the costume’s design by tracing the history of the founding of Panama City in 1519 which was the first city on the mainland located on the Pacific coast, and was later called ‘Our Lady of Santa María La Antigua.’
The organization further explained the significance of the costume, “The trips of the Spaniards to Castilla de Oro, the institution of the Bay of Portobelo, the traffic of merchandise from Europe to the Viceroyalty of Peru and the discovery of the new lands in South America, led to the expansion of Christianity inherited from the conquerors in the Panamanian territory. After the destruction of Panama City by pirates and corsairs in 1671, the settlers moved 10 kilometers away and built a new city today called “Casco Antiguo”.
The renewal of the city brought with it the transfer of Catholic beliefs and this is how the church that guards the Golden Altar, the brotherhood of San Francisco de Asís, Los Mercedarios, La Catedral, the convent of Santo Domingo, Compañía de Jesus, and the San Felipe Neri Oratory. These groups brought Christianity to the different governorates created in the territory.
The evangelization of the natives, the teaching of good and evil, celebrated with the Corpus Chisti Dances, and the veneration of Christian images are the inheritance of the conquerors. Thanks to this colonial miscegenation, the peoples of Panama adopt these beliefs and tell in their legends the devotion, veneration, and fervor for Christian images, which reached the towns through the sea. That legend of sailors who discovered wooden boxes with religious images are embodied in the devotion of the Christs who arrived at the ports of Portobelo, Antón or Alanje or the virgins at the port of Guararé or Mensabé and that today are proof of the expansion of the Christianity in Panama and whose main characters are the fishermen and the sea.”
Miss Universe Panama 2020 Carmen Jaramillo is one of the favorites of the title of Miss Universe 2020 as she is strong, confident, and determined with her goals. Carmen’s national costume has received a lot of appreciation from the pageant community for being unique, traditional, and very exquisite. The use of props in the costume has been highly appreciated as they showcase how Spanish Colonizers relied on sailing for transporting goods from Europe and how Christianity spread out rapidly in the region as sailing provided an effective way of communication for the people of Panama.
What do you think about the Carmen’s national costume?