Helmet Mask from the Kasai region of the Republic of Congo. This is a royal mask, but the king choose someone to wear it for him. They are worn as part of a costume and it represents Ngady a mwash, the sister and wife of Woot a legendary ancestor and embodiment of womanhood. The lines streaming from below the mask's eyes represent the hardships endured by women, the black and white stones represent the hearth and domesticity.