ABSTRACT
With a population currently estimated at 450,000, the Dogon inhabit the mountainous region of the cliffs of Bandiagara, in the Great Bend of the Niger River in Mali. They also occupy an important place in the anthropological literature of African peoples, especially because of the work of Marcel Griaule and his colleagues. In this spectacular but difficult terrain, these ingenious and hardworking agricultural people have developed a remarkable civilization as witnessed by the beauty of their architectural constructions, the wealth of their artistic productions, and the vitality of their rites and ceremonies.
