22 INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL ANTHROPOLOGY — PUBLICATION NO. 9 



structed. The type of house a Terena will build cold spells the people sit around fires in the early 



depends on his financial resources as well as his morning to keep warm. 



social prestige and the type may vary from a grass Containers found in the houses are of the fol- 



hut to a painted adobe house with a tile roof. All loMnng types : 



Terena houses, even when they are made of dried ( 1 ) Netted bags made from yulii fibers used for 



grass, are of the Brazilian pattern, that is, rec- carrying and storing sweetpotatoes, maize, and 



tangular with a gable roof. A house generally has other garden produce. Small bags are called veri 



two rooms, with a lean-to kitchen in the rear. and the large ones nimake. These bags can be 



Each room usually has one window without glass carried on the back or used as saddlebags. The 



which can be closed for the night by a shutter. mesh averages 4 inches and the size of the twine 



There are usually a front and a back door. The varies with the size of the bag, generally being 



floors are always of beaten earth. about the size of heavy cotton fish netting. 



As the village is laid out in rectangular blocks (2) Round baskets of various sizes plaited from 



the houses form a regular pattern facing the thin strips of wild bamboo or other wild cane, 



streets, with gardens and orchards in the rear. Some of the larger baskets have handles, so that 



The few Terena stores imitate the stores in Taunay they can be hung from a peg in the wall to keep 



by painting "Casa (and name of owner)" over dogs and chickens from taking the contents, 



the doorway. In some cases adobe houses are (3) Large wide-mouthed clay pots for storing 



whitewashed inside. A few dabs of yellow or red water, ranging from 1 to 4 gallons in content, 



paint cover the underlying whitewasli. These pots are made by the coil method and are 



A study of house types on the basis of building unglazed and undecorated. It is reported that 



material and the presence or absence of paint gives ^" *''° neighbormg village of Cachoeirinha some 



the following distribution for the 8G buildings in «^ ]^'^ Terena glaze and decorate these large pots. 



., .,] . (4) l^lat, glazed pottery dishes are also found. 



" These are of a dark-red color, without decoration, 



^®,', ,, Number ^^^ ^^.^ ^gg^j f^j, gej-ying food. 



(1) Mud and wattle with thatched roof 23 , ^ r^ ■ i i • rr^ 



(2) Adobe with thatched roof 19 _(^) Cast-iron pots purchased in Taunay are 



(3) Painted adobe witii tile roof 14 widely used for cooking food. 



(4) Palisade walls with thatched roof 9 ((5) Empty kerosene cans are always in demand 



(5) Painted adobe with thatched roof 8 f^^. ^^^^- ^^^^^ ^^^ j^ ^ ^^^ ^^^ J3 



(6) Painted brick with tile roof 8 ^ J i J 



(7) All grass on bamboo frame 3 readily accepted by the Terena. 



(8) Mud and wattle with tile roof 1 (7) Calabashes of various sizes cut tp form 



(9) Painted bricJi with thatched roof 1 ^ups and ladles are used for many purposes. Chi- 



Upon entering a Terena house one is immedi- marron or mate tea is drunk from calabashes. 



ately aware of the scarcity of furniture. Only the (8) Flat iron pans about a yard in diameter 



best houses have a table made from rough hand- are supplied by the Post for toasting manioc meal, 



sawn planks. It appears that the table is more for (9) Wooden mortars with wooden pestles for 



show than for use, as the Terena eat around the grinding dried maize or dried meat stand in every 



cooking fire at the back of the house. The best back yard. The mortar is a round block of wood 



houses also have one or two rough wooden benches about 3 feet long and IS inches in diameter, hol- 



or a chair or two made from box lumber. Almost lowed out in one end to the depth of 8 or 10 inches, 



every house has a low platform bed resting on The block is set upright, and maize is placed in 



forked stakes driven into the ground for the owner the hollow and p.ounded with a heavy wooden 



and his wife. Other occupants sleep in home-made pestle about 3 or 4 feet long; a common sight 



hammocks, which during the day are hung against every morning is to see women at the rear of the 



the wall. In several of the houses regular spring houses pounding out the corn meal or dried meat 



beds with mattresses are found. For covers the required for the day. 



Terena use a single cotton or light woolen blanket. (10) In some houses a few porcelain cups, 



Blankets are not an important item, for during glasses, and table knives and forks are seen. 



