In ancient Rome, small stone statues depicting the Greco-Roman fertility god Priapus, also a protector of plants and gardens, were frequently placed in Roman gardens. Garden gnomes were first described during the Renaissance period by Swiss alchemist Paracelsus as "diminutive figures two spans in height who did not like to mix with humans".
During this period, stone "grotesques", which were typically garishly painted, metre-tall figurines, were commonly placed in the gardens of the wealthy. Among the figures depicted were gobbi (Italian for dwarfs or hunchbacks). In particular, Jacques Callot produced 21 versions of gobbi, which he engraved and printed in 1616. By the late 1700s, gnome-like statues made of wood or porcelain called "house dwarfs" became popular household decorations. The area surrounding town of Brienz in Switzerland was known for their production of wooden house dwarfs.