Sierra Leonean Pomdo Kissi Bas Relief, 1950s, Soapstone

Antique Sierra Leone stone carved Pomdo Kissi bas relief statue

Antique Sierra Leone Pomdo Kissi bas-relief statue in carved soapstone depicting a woman on the right carrying a basket, while a smaller, child-sized figure on the left appears to be holding a machete while clinging to a branch.

Superb large Kissi soapstone statue from Sierra Leone
The Kissi are a West African population, living mainly in forested Guinea, but also in Sierra Leone and Liberia. They number 1,035,000 individuals.

Among others, colonial physician H. Néel and ethnologist Denise Paulme described anthropomorphic carved stones known as pomda (plur. of pomdo). Made of steatite or clay and buried in the ground for a long time, they are considered ancestral figures and are unearthed by the Kissi to be consulted during an “interrogation”.

Made of steatite - a stone almost as flexible to work with as wood - these small statues generally feature a rather large head, bulging eyes and a blunt nose.

The original function and exact age of these numerous pieces, found in the fields during agricultural work, remain unknown. Some seem to predate the arrival of the Portuguese in the Gulf of Guinea.


Height: 34 cm - 13.38 ”
Width : 35 cm - 13.77 ”
Depth : 10 cm - 3.93 ”
Weight : 9 kg