A fascinating Dogon ceremony, who believe masks serve as a connection between heaven and earth. The Dogon people perform this traditional dance several times a year with masks and walking on stilts. The 400,000 Dogon people live in Mali, 180 miles south of Timbuktu. Video via @pfro on Instagram | African Drumming

The Sigui masked dance ritual of the Dogon people is one of the rarest ceremonial events in the world, performed once every 50 years in villages across Mali. This multi-year cycle marks the renewal of the world and honors the first ancestor, linking generations through time, memory, and movement. During Sigui, dancers wear towering wooden masks — some over 20 feet long — representing ancestral spirits and cosmic order. Accompanied by chanting, drums, and processions that move from village to vil