Gaucho, one of the Spanish-Indian "cowboys" of Argentina and Uruguay. Called the "Centaurs of the Pampas," they were expert horsemen spending much of their nomadic life in the saddle while they tended their herds of half-wild horses and cattle. Their costume included a wide-brimmed hat, a bright shirt, a lasso, and high boots into which they stuffed their loose-fitting trousers. Leathermaking was one of their occupations; for sport, they hunted the rhea with the bolas, a weapon fashioned of two or three iron or stone balls connected by a cord. When properly thrown, it would whirl itself around the legs of the running bird. Gauchos are often pictured holding silver bowls containing mate which they drank through a strainer-like silver bombilla. Few genuine Gauchos remain today, but some Argentine ranch workers still wear the picturesque costume of their generally carefree and arrogant predecessors.
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