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The Bandiagara Escarpment is an escarpment
Escarpment

In geomorphology, an escarpment is a transition zone between different physiogeographic provinces that involves a sharp, steep elevation differential, characterized by a cliff or steep slope....
 in the Dogon country of Mali
Mali

Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked nation in West Africa. Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, bordering Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the C?te d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west....
.

The sandstone
Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock Particle size . Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust ....
 cliff rises about 500 meters above the lower sandy flats to the south. It has a length of approximately 150 kilometers. The area of the escarpment
Escarpment

In geomorphology, an escarpment is a transition zone between different physiogeographic provinces that involves a sharp, steep elevation differential, characterized by a cliff or steep slope....
 is inhabited today by the Dogon people. Before the Dogon the escarpment was inhabited by the Tellem
Tellem

The Tellem were the people who inhabited the Bandiagara Escarpment in Mali. The Dogon people migrated to the escarpment region around the 14th century....
 and Toloy. Many structures remain from the Tellem.

The Bandiagara Escarpment was listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List
List of World Heritage Sites in Africa

This is a list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Sites in Africa. St Helena although being remote from Africa is included in this list as Africa is its closest continental neighbour....
 in 1989.

The Cliffs of Bandiagara are a sandstone chain ranging from south to northeast over 200 km and extending to the Grandamia massif
Massif

In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's Crust that is demarcated by geologic faults or flexures. In the Plate tectonics, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole....
.






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The Bandiagara Escarpment is an escarpment
Escarpment

In geomorphology, an escarpment is a transition zone between different physiogeographic provinces that involves a sharp, steep elevation differential, characterized by a cliff or steep slope....
 in the Dogon country of Mali
Mali

Mali, officially the Republic of Mali, is a landlocked nation in West Africa. Mali is the seventh largest country in Africa, bordering Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the C?te d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west....
.

The sandstone
Sandstone

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-size mineral or rock Particle size . Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust ....
 cliff rises about 500 meters above the lower sandy flats to the south. It has a length of approximately 150 kilometers. The area of the escarpment
Escarpment

In geomorphology, an escarpment is a transition zone between different physiogeographic provinces that involves a sharp, steep elevation differential, characterized by a cliff or steep slope....
 is inhabited today by the Dogon people. Before the Dogon the escarpment was inhabited by the Tellem
Tellem

The Tellem were the people who inhabited the Bandiagara Escarpment in Mali. The Dogon people migrated to the escarpment region around the 14th century....
 and Toloy. Many structures remain from the Tellem.

The Bandiagara Escarpment was listed in the UNESCO World Heritage List
List of World Heritage Sites in Africa

This is a list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Sites in Africa. St Helena although being remote from Africa is included in this list as Africa is its closest continental neighbour....
 in 1989.

The Cliffs of Bandiagara are a sandstone chain ranging from south to northeast over 200 km and extending to the Grandamia massif
Massif

In geology, a massif is a section of a planet's Crust that is demarcated by geologic faults or flexures. In the Plate tectonics, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole....
. The end of the massif is marked by the Hombori Tondo, Mali's highest peak at 1,115 meters. Because of its archaeological, ethnological and geological characteristics, the entire site is one of the most imposing in West Africa.

The cave-dwelling Tellem
Tellem

The Tellem were the people who inhabited the Bandiagara Escarpment in Mali. The Dogon people migrated to the escarpment region around the 14th century....
, an ethnic group later pushed out by the arrival of the Dogons, used to live in the slopes of the cliff. The Tellem legacy is evident in the caves they carved into the cliffs so that they could bury their dead high up far from the frequent flash floods of the area. Dozens of villages are located along the cliff, such as Kani Bonzon. It was near to this village that the Dogons arrived in the 14th century and from there they spread over the plateau, the escarpment and the plains of the Seno-Gondo.

There is an interesting theory explaining why the Dogon were relatively undisturbed by the French colonial powers. Supposedly there are a series of natural tunnels weaving through the Bandiagara Escarpment which only the Dogon know about and they are able to use these caves to surprise and drive away any aggressors.

Today, local guides can take tourist groups on trips along the Escarpment to visit the Dogon villages. A series of trails run along the cliffs, and hostels in each village provide food and lodging. The host villages receive income from the hostels and the tourist tax.

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