The Bangubangu carve freestanding anthropomorphic sculptures, which are characterized by coffee bean shaped eyes and pointed beards.
Women also produce high quality pots that are sold in the local markets for profit.
All of these peoples share similar carving styles that venerate the ancestors. They originated in the southeast around the Lualaba River and migrated in several waves to their current location near Lake Tanganyika. Like the Hemba, they have also been greatly influenced by their contact with the Luba. During the 19th century they cooperated with Moslem slave traders from the eastern coast and helped to establish a trading post at Kabambare. The population has been seriously reduced due to wars, slavery, and sickness, resulting in very few surviving examples of Bangubangu sculpture.