Dibu bells played an important role in ritual ceremonies, community gatherings, and events linked to social prestige. Their sound marked significant occasions, accompanied religious activities, and helped structure ceremonial performances. In Kongo cosmology, sound-producing objects often serve as intermediaries between the world of the living and the realm of the ancestors. The ringing of the bell could therefore be understood as a means of communication with protective spiritual forces and ancestral beings.

The female figure surmounting the bell symbolizes fertility, lineage continuity, and prosperity—core values within Kongo culture. Through the combination of sculpture, geometric decoration, and ritual sound, this Dibu bell exemplifies the richness of Kongo art, where functional objects become powerful expressions of memory, authority, and spiritual connection.

Among the Batabwa (or Tabwa), a people of Katanga and Tanganyika, the likembe is much more than an instrument: it accompanies funeral rites, initiations, healings, and epic tales.

Carved from precious wood and fitted with metal tines made from recycled materials, each Tabwa thumb piano often bears geometric patterns and cosmological symbols characteristic of the ethnic group's tribal art.

The body of the drum is made from a calabash, a dried gourd, and is covered with a stretched membrane, likely animal skin. The upper edge is decorated with colorful beads and cowrie shells, typical of ritual and ceremonial instruments.

These drums are often used in ritual, ceremonial, or festive contexts. They can accompany dances, songs, and serve in rites of passage or other significant social events.

Calabash drums decorated in this manner are common among several ethnic groups such as the Yoruba, Bamiléké, and other peoples of West and Central Africa.