The Lozi have a tradition of giving bowls as gifts to non-Lozi peoples. The majority of the bowls in Western collections appear to never have been used, but that does not mean in the Lozi context that they are inauthentic. In 1905, the Lozi king, himself a carver, created a curio shop at Victoria Falls to sell to tourists. This expanded market may have led to an increase in figurative lids, many of which feature water birds. The choice of a leopard and the contrasting colors of this piece are distinctive.