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A beautiful kneeling female figure Holding a Child forms the base, four faces are at the base of the drum.

Drums such as this are some of the most revered and important objects identified with male and female initiations being played at the end of the initiation ritual. Drums used in male initiation are known as Timba. They are immense and exceptionally tall. to reach the drumhead of a Timba drum, the player would need to stand on a stool or upturned mortar. Drums used in female initiation are smaller and are known as A-ndef. They all have caryatid figures, animals, or geometric forms supporting the barrel of the drum. 

 Caryatid drums known as A-Ndef used by Baga women serve to focus their identity and solidarity and shape their rituals. Smaller than the men’s drum, a-Ndef are displayed and beaten publicly during elaborate marriage ceremonies, funerals and while accompanying dancers. The supporting female figure is often shown holding a child. Large drums were beaten only by men. Very Small ones were made by men, but commissioned and used by women, in rituals to support female solidarity. They were owned by the women's organizations, and beaten only by women.

The use of the timba was restricted to men. Beliefs about the drum operated on a number of levels: the drum was a tool that underscored the primacy of
male social institutions and their political power in an adult world. For Baga men, indeed, the main ritual occupation was the control of initiation into
adulthood, immersion in esoteric knowledge of the sacred, and the use of restricted paraphernalia. While the timba was primarily used in initiation
ceremonies, it also made appearances at weddings, funerals of high-ranking male elders and sacrifices to the ancestors, especially after the harvest. In
these contexts, the power of men was asserted through the appearance of the drum. The drums were so tall that they could be played only by standing on
a stool.

A drum was one of the most important commissions an artist could receive in Baga society.