The dramatic bark cloth kavat masks created by Central
Baining peoples are used exclusively in the night dance, a
nocturnal performance lit by firelight. The Central Baining
practice both day dance and night dance rites. The day
dance, accompanied by an orchestra of women, is devoted
to female fertility, agriculture, and the mourning of the
dead, phenomena typically associated with the community.

The night dance, by contrast, is accompanied by a male
orchestra and dedicated to spirits, animals, and commodities
associated with the surrounding forest, which are represented
by the kavat masks. Several dozen forms of kavat masks
exist, each of which depicts a spirit linked with a specific
animal, plant, product, or activity associated with the
forest. The split top of this mask indicates that it likely represents a spirit associated with the forks of trees.