DOI issue:
Vol. VI : 3 1990
DOI article:Goe, Michael R.: Tillage with the traditional maresha in the Ethiopian highlands
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.49003#0148
138
MICHAEL R. GOE
damaged by birds, insects or rain. A leather
strap H (yemaneko maseria) is tied between
the bottom ends of the pegs below the oxen’s
necks to keep the yoke from being lifted off
their shoulders.
Yokes break much less often than maresha
beams. Usually the pegs securing the yoke
will snap first due to animals pulling or push-
ing against each another. However, these
pieces, like the stilt and ears of the maresha,
are easily replaced since curing of the wood is
not necessary. Yokes made of harder woods
such as Olea africana, Acacia, abyssinica or
Podocarpus gracilior break less frequently,
commonly lasting 10 to 20 years.
The length of the yoke-beam is also meas-
ured using a cubit, short ones being three and
Fig. 12. New yoke and sheep skin to be attached as
padding. □ Neues Joch und Schaffell, das als Pol-
sterung dienen soil.
long ones four. Farmers around Debre Ber-
han stated that they preferred a short yoke
for tilling plots in the bottomland areas where
the soils are heavier because they believe it
positions the oxen closer together, thus con-
centrating their forward pulling force. Long
Fig. 13. Carrying the maresha and yoke from the
field. □ Maresha und Joch werden vom Feld getra-
gen.
yokes space the animals farther apart which
aids in manoeuvreability on stony or sloping
plots, or where turning around after a pass
requires climbing over obstacles such as stone
terraces or bushes. Spacing of the pegs along
the beam is done by using either a string or a
series of measurements employing a cubit,
the palms of the hands, or thumb to fore-
finger or fifth-digit. Measurements made of
yokes in four of the survey areas are shown in
table III.
Measurements of mareshas and yokes from
the survey areas are compared with those of
four other provinces of Ethiopia in table IV.
Except for differences seen in stilt and handle
lengths in Gojam and Gonder Provinces and
in beam and share lengths in Eritrea Province,
there is a marked similarity among the same
parts.
MICHAEL R. GOE
damaged by birds, insects or rain. A leather
strap H (yemaneko maseria) is tied between
the bottom ends of the pegs below the oxen’s
necks to keep the yoke from being lifted off
their shoulders.
Yokes break much less often than maresha
beams. Usually the pegs securing the yoke
will snap first due to animals pulling or push-
ing against each another. However, these
pieces, like the stilt and ears of the maresha,
are easily replaced since curing of the wood is
not necessary. Yokes made of harder woods
such as Olea africana, Acacia, abyssinica or
Podocarpus gracilior break less frequently,
commonly lasting 10 to 20 years.
The length of the yoke-beam is also meas-
ured using a cubit, short ones being three and
Fig. 12. New yoke and sheep skin to be attached as
padding. □ Neues Joch und Schaffell, das als Pol-
sterung dienen soil.
long ones four. Farmers around Debre Ber-
han stated that they preferred a short yoke
for tilling plots in the bottomland areas where
the soils are heavier because they believe it
positions the oxen closer together, thus con-
centrating their forward pulling force. Long
Fig. 13. Carrying the maresha and yoke from the
field. □ Maresha und Joch werden vom Feld getra-
gen.
yokes space the animals farther apart which
aids in manoeuvreability on stony or sloping
plots, or where turning around after a pass
requires climbing over obstacles such as stone
terraces or bushes. Spacing of the pegs along
the beam is done by using either a string or a
series of measurements employing a cubit,
the palms of the hands, or thumb to fore-
finger or fifth-digit. Measurements made of
yokes in four of the survey areas are shown in
table III.
Measurements of mareshas and yokes from
the survey areas are compared with those of
four other provinces of Ethiopia in table IV.
Except for differences seen in stilt and handle
lengths in Gojam and Gonder Provinces and
in beam and share lengths in Eritrea Province,
there is a marked similarity among the same
parts.