| History: |
Sapi is the name given to the peoples that lived
along coastal Sierra Leone by Portuguese traders
during the 15th and 16th centuries. Stone objects
found by Mende farmers who live in the same area
today have been attributed to these peoples. Beautiful
ivory carvings, known in the literature as Afro-Portuguese
ivories, were commissioned by Portuguese sailors
who visited this area. The ivories incorporate
both African and Portuguese forms and are thought
to have been made by the same people who made
the stone objects found by Mende peoples. |
