The Ituri Rainforest is part of an enormous and globally important ecosystem which lies just to the west of the Great Lakes Region and the countries of Uganda and Tanzania. It is home to many rare animals and plants, as well as numerous human cultures which are barely understood. The Songola are a small tribal group of about 8000 people living in the forest near the neighboring Rega, Lengola and Kumu peoples. Artistically, the worls of the navite Ituri peoples are interrelated to such an extent that styles, shapes, and coloration tend to coalesce. The uniting factor in Ituri art is a naive, distant charm, full of mystery and integrating stylized formal elements that even today are poorly understood in the developed world. Sadly, the masks and very rare statues of the Sungola have come to light only in the last quarter century, a result of the scattering of cultures, who have abandoned their homelands, looking for food and trying to escape the recurring cycles of political unrest.