Mintadi figurines National Museum in Szczecin

A group of stylistically characteristic art objects dating from the 16th century, originating from the territory of the Democratic Republic of Congo. A group of stone sculptures (chlorite slate and soapstone) known as "mintadi" occurring in the area occupied by the Bakongo people. These monuments present a sitting male or female figure (rarely a group of several people) carved in stone, which is distinguished by a large head. Figurines of "mintadi" were placed on home altars or the graves of bosses (villages, families) and on the graves of their wives and mothers. "Mintadi" have been known since the contacts of the Portuguese with the Congo state in the 16th century. According to some researchers, some of the figurines show the influence of Christianization on the art of Bakongo.