How did the Dogon people of West Africa use a basket as a model for the universe?
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Basketry
Overview of basketry on Madeira Island, Portugal.
According to Dogon tradition, the first ancestor received a square-bottomed basket featuring a round mouth, a design consistent with those used by the people in the 20th century. When upended, this basket served as a foundational model for their world system.1
In this cosmological model, the basket's circular base represents the sun, while its square terrace represents the sky. This use of basketry as a symbolic framework reflects the broader Dogon tendency to relate their culture and social organization to their myth of creation.12