Soapstone Bird of Great Zimbabwe
The soapstone birds of Great Zimbabwe are carved birds about 40 centimetres tall, with human lips, folded wings, and feet that grip the columns on which they once stood within the ruined stone city. Eight are known, six large and two small, and they are believed to have been royal emblems of the Shona state that built the city between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries, possibly representations of the bateleur eagle, the fish eagle, or a spirit bird of kingship. The birds probably crowned the walls and monoliths of the royal enclosure, marking the authority of the ruler, and the city itself