Central Plateau Region of Mali

Dogon

Wood
ca. Mid-20th century
Length: 20 inches
Aerophone – Lip Vibrated – Trumpet/Horn

Wood trumpet of the Dogon people of the central plateau region of the country of Mali. The Dogon are well known for their mask dances, wooden sculptures, and symbolic religious traditions.

The Dogon have become popularized for their ancient tales on human origins and extraterrestrial contact. According to legend, a race of beings called Nommo, came from the star system Sirius, thousands of years ago. The beings are said to have come to Earth and provided humans with knowledge. They gave the Dogon information about their solar system as well as our own. These same creatures also appear in Babylonian and Sumerian myths.

Oddly, the Dogon did have knowledge for centuries that were, until Galileo and his telescope, unknown to the Western world. They identified Jupiter’s moons and Saturn’s rings and knew that the Sun was the center of our solar system. They have stories about the big bang and other astronomical events. They had awareness about an invisible companion star orbiting Sirius that was unidentified until 1970. It baffles scientists to this day that an ancient race had knowledge of solar systems that cannot be seen without the help of high-powered telescopes.

Dogon religion is based on oral traditions, which may vary slightly depending on which Dogon clan is being consulted. The most widespread account states that the Nommo are the creation gods, who came from the sky in spaceships, and will return one day. Ancestor worship and cult initiation plays a large part of their belief system.

Source:     The Dogon People | African Tribes : Discover African Art  &  Baquart, Jean-Baptiste. The Tribal Arts of Africa. New York: Thames and Hudson Inc.