The Baboa live in the savanna region in the north of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are in close contact with the Mangbetu and Zande peoples. Often, the staffs represented the hierarchy among the chiefs of the tribe, who might carry a staff to show their rank as distinguished elders. The ornamental faces on the staffs can represent spirits, chiefs, or the chief’s ancestors. They serve as much as a religious symbol as an authoritative one.