The myths of the Dogon people of Mali, West Africa, bear a striking resemblance to modern scientific definitions of matter. Scranton offers a case-by-case comparison of Dogon descriptions and drawings to corresponding scientific definitions and diagrams from authors like Stephen Hawking and Brian Greene A look at the close resemblance between the creation and structure of matter in both Dogon mythology and modern science. Foreword by John Anthony West ix Acknowledgments xv Introduction 1(8) ONE How This Book Came to Be 9(12) TWO Themes of the Ancient Creation Stories 21(9) THREE The Dogon Creation Story 30(9) FOUR Dogon Symbols and Meanings 39(15) FIVE Dogon Parallels to the Big Bang and Atomic and Quantum Structure 54(20) SIX Dogon Parallels to String Theory 74(8) SEVEN Dogon Parallels to Egyptian Mythology 82(28) EIGHT Dogon Parallels to Genetics and Sexual Reproduction 110(13) NINE Archaeology and Dogon Symbols 123(12) TEN Judaism and Dogon Symbols 135(17) ELEVEN The Dogon Concept of Light 152(8) TWELVE Global Signs of the Serpent Religion 160(18) THIRTEEN Fall of the Serpent Religion 178(10) FOURTEEN Conclusion 188(7) Notes 195(5) Bibliography 200(3) Index 203