Offered in this lot is a "Nomoli" carved stone figurine native to Sierra Leone and Liberia. Nomoli figurines are among the earliest works of art from Sierra Leone. Portuguese explorers first recorded the existence of the figurines in the fifteenth century. The Mende and Kissi people of Sierra Leone place these small statues near their homes and in fields of crops as a form of protection, in the belief that the Nomoli figurines will give them good health and good harvests. During the 20th century, Sierra Leonean immigrants brought their ancestors' Nomoli figurines with them to the United States as a way to preserve the spiritual powers of the past. Nomoli figurines are often carved into a crouching stance. Their heads are oblong in shape. This figure is 4 1/4" tall and on the base measures 2 1/4" x 1 1/2". This contempary carving has the artists name and unknown numbers on the bottom. This figure is in very good primitive condition.