Mapuche Ruka Architecture

A ruka, also spelled ruca, is the traditional dwelling type of the Mapuche people of southern Chile and Argentina. It was originally round in plan with a conical roof, without windows, and organized inside as a single open space centered on a hearth called the kutralwe, used for cooking, light and heat. Rukas typically covered between about 120 and 240 square meters and were built from planks or poles of coligue, a bamboo-like plant, reinforced on the inside with wooden posts and covered with tule, with roofs of junquillo or grasses similar to Peruvian feathergrass; round or oval shapes were most traditional, though rectangular and square rukas were also built. The main entrance faced east, reflecting the Mapuche cosmological orientation toward their eastern homeland, Pwelmapu, with a smaller second entrance sometimes facing west. Building a ruka was a communal undertaking known as rukatun or rukan: the future owner sought permission from the spirit Ngen-mapu and notified community leaders, the community then gathered materials and built the house together, and completion was marked by feasting and masked dancing, with masks traditionally carved from wood or collon.