TheImprovement ofTropical and Subtropical Rangelands

252 IMPROVEMENT OF TROPIOAL AND SUBTROPIOAL RANGELANDS
which, ideally, the camp will be moved. Kel Tamasheq do not condone
amputation, surgery, or mutilation of the body, even in order
to save life.
CAMP ORGANIZATION
The necessity for more or less constant movement has greatly
influenced both the material culture and the living pattern of the
Kel Tamasheq. The former is restricted to household necessities
that are light and not easily broken; for this reason, little pottery
is used; meet vessels are made of wood. The only item of pottery
noted in one of the camps was a larp broken pot (1 m diameter)
in which hides were soaked to remove the hair before tanning. With
superfluous items cut to a minimum, aesthetics are expressed in such
functional items as carved tent poles, beds, bowls, and intricately
woven mats, as well as through personal decoration-hair styles,
necklaces, swords, charms, and leather wallets.
Tents are the logical response to needs for a shelter that can
be quickly and easily dismantled and rebuilt during seasons of rapid
movement (figure 3-3). Tents are placed over a framework ofwooden
polesj these poles are lashed together with ropes made from the
bark of Acacia tortili. (a/aga,). They are fashioned from goat or
cow hides, the number depending on the wealth or social status of
the occupant-from as few as 4 to as many as 6O-sewn together
with thongs. They constitute the heaviest and bulkiest item of the
Kel Tamasheq's gear, but this weight is nece88ary: the tents must
withstand the high winds and torrential rains of the wet Beason.
During theBe storms, the nomads secure the tents by tying their
edges to the bases of the auxiliary tent supports and by throwing
acr088 the tent ropes, whoee ends are knotted around straw and
buried in holes 1 m deep. Tents have an average life of 10 years and
are easily repaired by stitching circular patches of leather over ripe
or holes. During the hot season, when the camps are stationary for
weeks at a time, straw huts are constructed that are cooler than the
dark tentsj the latter are stretched out on the ground where they
are mended and butter is melted into the leather by the hot sun to
soften and preserve the skin. Red ochre (temes,eit) is then rubbed
in as an additional preservative.
Camps are located in relation to natural features according to the
season. In the cooler months (September-November and February­
March), the camp is placed near areas of small trees or bushes that