What is a tolek?
A tolek, also spelled teleuk, is a shell-shaped or bullet-shaped dwelling made of mud, best known from the Musgum (Mousgoum) people of northern Cameroon. The hut has the form of a tall, pointed dome. Its outer surface carries raised ribs of mud in a regular pattern, which makes these dwellings instantly recognisable.
Construction
- Material: local mud (loam) mixed with water and often with plant fibres such as straw.
- Built in layers: the wall is built up by hand, course by course. Each layer has to dry a little before the next is added.
- Shape: the pointed, parabolic shape is structurally efficient. The wall is mainly in compression, so mud, which can take hardly any tension, can still form a tall dome.
- No scaffolding: the raised ribs serve as steps and handholds during construction. Later, residents also climb them to maintain the outside.
- Drainage: the ribs guide rainwater down in channels, so the mud wall is washed away less.
Significance
The tolek is often cited as an example of vernacular architecture: building with local materials and inherited knowledge, where form, structure, climate and maintenance form a single whole. As the tradition fell out of use, few authentic examples remain.
For anyone building with earth today, the same lesson applies: protect earth walls from water from above and below, and design shapes that are loaded mainly in compression.
Related terms
- Loam
- Clay plaster
- Adobe
- Rammed earth (pisé)
- Dome
- Architectural style
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