Description

This is a granary door made by a Dogon artisan. The Dogon are an ethnic group indigenous to the central plateau region of Mali, in West Africa, south of the Niger bend, near the city of Bandiagara, and in Burkina Faso. The Dogon are well known for making artwork out of wood, especially carved masks, figures, and granary doors. At first hunters, now on their small fields the Dogon cultivate millet, sorghum, wheat, and onion. The millet is stored in high quadrangular granaries around which they build their houses. In Dogon society, the higher one's status, the more elaborate and complex in design the granary door will be. Ancestral beings are carved on the door in order to protect what lies on the other side of the door. These doors also recognize spiritual beings that are in charge of fertility and agriculture. The last photo shows a Dogon granary door in place on a granary building. This door was most likely made for sale and not used on a granary.