In the year 2000, the J. B Coleman Library was gifted a collection of 17th,18th, and 19th-century African artifacts from about 17 donors. The artifacts represent different tribes from 12 different countries (Democratic Republic of Congo, Mali, Nigeria, Guinea, Senegal, Burkina, Angola, Zambia, etc)

This African art gallery will feature a number of Sculptures and masks most of these objects were made in the late 19th or early 20th century. The collection's focus is on masks and figures from West and Central Africa, mostly carved in wood.