Who lives in Bandiagara cliffs?
The dramatic 95-mile long Bandiagara Escarpment in Mali, West Africa, has been inhabited since at least the 3rd century B.C. Its current inhabitants are the Dogon people, who arrived in the area during the 15th century.
Where are the Bandiagara cliffs?
The Bandiagara Escarpment is an escarpment in the Dogon country of Mali. The sandstone cliff rises about 500 m (1,600 ft) above the lower sandy flats to the south. It has a length of approximately 150 km (90 mi). The area of the escarpment is inhabited today by the Dogon people.
Where is the Dogon village?
Among the Dogon, several oral traditions have been recorded as to their origin. One relates to their coming from Mande, located to the southwest of the Bandiagara escarpment near Bamako. According to this oral tradition, the first Dogon settlement was established in the extreme southwest of the escarpment at Kani-Na.
How many Dogon villages are there?
To facilitate protection of Dogon and Tellem cliff dwellings, 400,000 hectares that include 250 villages located around the Bandiagara Escarpment were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1989.
What are Dogon houses made of?
Earth buildings are common in Dogon Country, but the main construction material in Dogon Country is stone, especially on the plateau. Building with stones is more expensive than building with earth, but clay is hard to find in the rocky landscape and stone houses last longer.
What are Dogon masks made out of?
Following a death, Dogon peoples bury the dead immediately. They dance emina, masks carved from wood and woven from hibiscus fiber, as part of a sequence of rites that are conducted for men long after they are buried.
What did the Dogon eat?
The Dogon are farmers. Their main crop is millet, planted at the start of the rainy season. Other crops include rice, beans, peas, peanuts, and sesame.
Where did the Dogon tribe come from?
The ancestors of the Dogon came from Mande, an area in southwest Mali and northeast Guinea that was home to the thirteenth-century Mali empire. The Dogon migrated after the empire’s collapse to the cliffs of the Bandiagara plateau.
What is Dogon religion?
Dogon religion is defined primarily through the worshiping of the ancestors and the spirits whom they encountered as they moved across the Western Sudan. The Awa society is responsible for carrying out the rituals, which allow the deceased to leave the world of the living and enter the world of the dead.
What does the Dogon mask symbolize?
By Dr. Christa Clarke, for The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Dogon masks, such as this one called kanaga, are worn primarily at dama, a collective funerary rite for Dogon men. The ritual’s goal is to ensure the safe passage of the spirits of the deceased to the world of the ancestors.
Why do dogons wear masks?
Dogon masks, such as this one called kanaga, are worn primarily at dama, a collective funerary rite for Dogon men. The ritual’s goal is to ensure the safe passage of the spirits of the deceased to the world of the ancestors.