website content

Figure - woman

Part of the collection: Collection of Dogonian art

Popularization note

Female fertility is an important aspect of Dogon life, yet menstrual bleeding, which is part of the menstrual cycle that testifies to a woman's well-functioning reproductive system, arouses great reluctance and even fear among the inhabitants of the Bandiagara Escarpment.According to oral tradition, the first menstrual blood appeared in the world when Yurugu, a rebellious descendant of the god Amma, the creator of the world, committed incest with his mother. During the act of intercourse, blood flowed from the defiled womb of Mother-Earth. This event caused the divine spouse to feel disgust with the Earth and to turn away from it. According to the Dogon, menstruating women are unclean. They are called yapune, as opposed to ayane, i.e. women who do not menstruate. The blood of yapune is bad for altars, the earth, bodies of water, it also harms men. Therefore, women menstruate in seclusion, in specially constructed houses called punulu or yapunuli. They are usually located outside the village walls. A menstruating woman can leave punulu only for the time of bathing. She goes to the place of ablution along a designated route. Taking a different route could lead to staining the ground. Punulu houses are round, about 2 metres in diameter and 1.7 metres high. They are made of natural stone, sealed with earth, have flat roofs and no windows, the only opening being a door. The outside walls are sometimes decorated in symbols referring to fertility. Women, who wish to have children, hang curved wooden sticks over the domolo entrance. There is also a small area around the punulu, fenced off with a wall, marking the boundaries of the courtyard.

Ewa Prądzyńska

Information about the object

Information about this object

Author / creator

unknown
Dogonowie

Dimensions

cały obiekt: height: 29 cm, width: 5,5 cm

Object type

figure

Creation time / dating

między 1951 — 2000

Creation / finding place

powstanie: Mopti, region (Republika Mali); znalezienie: Dourou, Republika Mali

Identification number

MNS/AF/7315

Location / status

object is not displayed now

You might also like:

Add note

Edit note

0/500

Jakiś filtr
Data od:
Era
Wiek:
+
Rok:
+
Data do:
Era
Wiek:
+
Rok:
+
asd