One of the most important characters in mukanda initiations represents the 'ideal woman' who is depicted as "fulfilled" woman, called Pwo, or a younger "potential" woman called Mwana Pwo. During initiation ceremonies women would escort the wearer of the mask to the center of the village, where she is received ceremoniously by the head of the village.

Pwo, the female role model, is a beautiful woman who speaks carefully and displays gentle manners, while assertively orchestrating specific songs, instructing drummers to accompany her dances on cue, and directing the public's response to the performance through hand gestures and implements which may include a whistle or a flywhisk.

Pwo is created by men and is performed in events related to male initiation, a male dancer represents this female role model and performs the ceremony, while wearing a costume with the mask which includes wooden breasts and a female bustle. Characterised by short steps and sensuous hip movements the dance performed during the ceremony is used as a type of sexual education presented openly to stress the fertility of this ancestral role model. Women accept this male concept of the ideal female, often dancing alongside them to test the skills of the impersonator. In order to emphasize her supernatural attributes as an ancestral spirit, Pwo sometimes dances on stilts or performs acrobatic skits.

Wood is used extensively in the making of masks, not only because of the abundant supply available in the areas where the Chokwe resides, but also because the carver believed that the tree has a spiritual soul and it's wood is the most natural home for the spirit in the mask

In addition to the complex braided hairstyle and metal coins used, decoration of the mask is extended to the bold expressively carved geometric facial features. Often used as a form of coded information parallel zigzag, cruciform, curved and spiral lines representing scarification marks or tattoos were frequently used to adorn the planes of the masks' face. The designs often denoted social status and were believed to have magical or religious powers. The facial scarifications below the eyes represent tears referring to the anguish mothers feel when they are ritually separated from their sons during the mukanda initiation. The forehead displays the chinge-lyengelye cross motif, a scarification design commonly interpreted as a Portuguese Cross of the Order of Christ.

Early 20th Century artists such as Picasso, inspired by the bold designs, collected African Tribal masks and used them to influence their own style. The tired tradition of figure painting in European Art was thereby refreshed but also resulted in the tendency to admire the bold designs and abstract patterns of African masks through European eyes, appreciated as exhibits on museum walls, cut off from their original meaning and magical power.

Source: "CHOKWE! - Art and Initiation Among Chokwe and Related Peoples"