Nomoli Statuette - Sherbro / Mendé Culture, Sierra Leone

Nomoli statuette
Sherbro / Mende culture, Sierra Leone
Hard stone with brown patina
H. 12.5 ; L. 4 cm

This monolithic anthropomorphic statuette stands on a circular base with stylised feet, its hands resting on its abdomen, its bust marked by a drooping chest and its back incised with a chequerboard pattern.

His shoulders are hemmed, giving way to a face with a mouth open to individualised teeth, marked by three vertical scarifications on the temples, a short nose with wide nostrils and coffee-bean eyes.

Although it is difficult to date these statuettes found buried in the ground, we do know that they refer to an ancient culture that existed before the arrival of the Portuguese. Some consider them to be the genies of nature, who influence the rain to help the rice harvest. Others call them pomda, "image of ancestors", or mahen yafe, which translates as "spirit of the chief" among the Mende people.

Buried in fields or tumuli, they were sometimes unearthed and placed on an altar to receive libations.

Text and photos © FCP CORIDON

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