Democratic Republic of the Congo

The DR Congo holds vast cultural wealth, from Kuba textiles and masks to rumba, sculpture and forest knowledge.

Textile & dress Music & dance Crafts Spirituality & rites Food & cooking

Knowledge in this place

Kuba raffia cloth

Kuba raffia cloth

Kuba weavers embroider raffia panels with cut-pile geometric patterns.

Textile & dress

Congolese rumba

Congolese rumba

Kinshasa rumba shaped a guitar-led dance music influential across the continent.

Luba royal sculpture

Luba royal sculpture

Luba carvers shape caryatid stools and lukasa memory boards for chiefs.

Pende and Yaka masks

Pende and Yaka masks

Carved masks accompany boys' initiation rites among Pende and Yaka peoples.

Spirituality & rites

Moambe chicken cooking

Moambe chicken cooking

Chicken simmered in palm-fruit sauce is a beloved festive national dish.