Daily Life in Dogon Region, Mali

A Dogon woman winnows millet in Teli, on the Bandiagara Escarpment, in the central region of Mali. The Escarpment was entered in the UNESCO (UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) World Heritage List in 1989. In the background, at left, is a baobab tree. The baobab is considered sacred in the Dogon religion. Once a year, the inhabitants of the Bandiagara Escarpment peel off a layer of bark from baobab trees to produce ropes and strings used for funeral rituals.