Masks were traditionally used in Africa in fertility and initiation rites and funeral and religious ceremonies. The masks are dramatic portraits of spiritual beings, departed ancestors, and invisible powers of social significance. Masks were made to conform to traditional standards and always used in ceremonies by trained performers. The masks were used in combination with full-body costumes and body paint. The complex ceremonial events expressed important social, religious, and moral values for the whole community.

The Kifwebe masks in the Reading Public Museum collection come from the Songye or Basongye society in Zaïre (formerly the Belgium Congo). The Kifwebe masks vary greatly, but in general are characterized by linear striation with wide and pronounced noses, oversized eyes and enlarged eyelids, protruding mouths, and adorned with a dried husk called "raffia." The masks were used in a dance called "Makaye a Kifwebe," or "dance of the mask." The Kifwebe was used when the chief of a village either died or was newly appointed or when a visiting dignitary arrived in the village.

An important aspect of African art (and African masks in particular) is that it influenced the development of Western art, especially through the innovative work of the French artists Picasso and Braque. African art has played an important role in the culture and history of the western world, and its distinctive characteristics are direct roots for the Cubist movement developed by Picasso and Braque.

One of the Kifwebe masks in the Museum's collection was donated to the Museum by George and Sue Viener, Reading. In another exhibit case is a large and important African sculpture that was donated to the Museum's African Collection of Rhoda Dersh and Dr. Jerome Dersh, Reading, Pennsylvania. Rhoda Dersh is a scholar on the meaning and significance of African Art.