Wood Encyclopedia

Search and identify wood species from around the world — with origin, Janka hardness, grain and color, working properties, common uses, and how to tell them apart.

Cedar of Lebanon

Cedar of Lebanon

Aromatic Mediterranean softwood from the fabled Cedar of Lebanon — light tan to warm brown, fine even grain, decay-resistant and famously fragrant.

Softwood
Ceriops tagal

Ceriops tagal

Very dense, tan-to-brown mangrove hardwood — hard, decay-resistant, and tannin-rich; used for poles, stakes, charcoal, and small durable joinery.

Hardwood
Iroko

Iroko

West Africa's durable golden-brown hardwood — often called African teak — prized for outdoor joinery, boatwork and worktops for its stability and decay resistance.

Tropical & Exotic
Sweet Chestnut

Sweet Chestnut

A pale-tan, oak-like European hardwood — ring-porous, light, and naturally durable — long used for beams, fencing, coopering, and rustic furniture.

Hardwood
Swiss Stone Pine

Swiss Stone Pine

Light, soft, aromatic Alpine softwood — the classic 'Zirbe' carving and paneling wood, pale cream to off-white with a lasting sweet resinous scent.

Softwood
Conifer (unidentified)

Conifer (unidentified)

A pale, straight-grained North American softwood cut from an unidentified conifer — light tan to pale yellow, light in weight, and easy to work.

Softwood
Abachi

Abachi

A very light, soft, pale West African hardwood with fine even grain — the classic sauna-bench and core-veneer wood, low in weight, heat, and resin.

Tropical & Exotic
Silver Fir

Silver Fir

A pale, lightweight European softwood — creamy, fine, even grained and resin-canal free — long sold with spruce as generic 'whitewood' for building and joinery.

Softwood
Hawthorn

Hawthorn

A very hard, dense pale European hedgerow hardwood with a fine even grain, prized in small sizes for turning, tool handles and engraving.

Hardwood
Spruce

Spruce

A light, soft, pale cream-to-tan European softwood with fine even grain — strong for its weight, easy to work, and the classic tonewood for instrument soundboards.

Softwood
Unknown Softwood

Unknown Softwood

A pale cream to light-tan European softwood of undetermined species, showing straight grain, visible rays and radial surface checking — light, soft and easy to work.

Softwood