| Acacia - A shrub yielding a yellow-coloured strong and durable hardwood, used in inlay work |
| Alder - Of light yellow brown colour, widely used in turnery |
| Amaranth - see Purple Heart, Bois Violette and Brazilian Rosewood |
| Amboyna - An East Indian wood of yellowish-brown colour, often used for its distinctive 'birds eye' burr figurings, used both on large surfaces, and as specific inlays |
| Apple - A heavy hardwood, reddish-brown in colour, with straight grain, used as both a veneer and inlay |
| Ash - Having a deep yellow brown colour of great depth, Hungarian ash has a strong 'water marked' grain, as opposed to the standard European variety |
| Beech - Of brownish white colour, having a speckled grain |
| Birch - Colour ranging from cream to biscuit, and having a straight plain grain |
| Bog Oak - Oak, which has been preserved in peat, bogs, black in colour, and possessing great hardness and strength |
| Box - A very hard, extremely heavy wood of pale yellow colour, with a fine regular texture, used in stringing and inlay work |
| Brazil Wood - A hard, heavy wood strongly marked colouring from brown through to red, used in veneering, or as an inlay |
| Calamandar - also known as Coromandel, and Macassar Ebony; A strikingly marked grain, its colours ranging from yellow, through hazel brown, to black |
| Camphorwood - Of a brown to yellow colour, possessing insect resistant qualities, much used in 'campaign' furniture |
| Cedar - A fragrant, light, soft brown wood with straight grain, resistant to warping, used as drawer linings in better furniture, and humidors |
| Cherry - A hardwood with reddish yellow close grain |
| Circassian Walnut - A generic name for the strongly figured wood, originating in the Caucasus and southern Europe, the colours having brown to yellow tones, and with the Italian variety having black inclusions |
| Coromandel - See Calamander and Macassar Ebony |
| Deal - A generic name given to the timber of firs and pines |
| Ebony - A dense hardwood of black hue, the origin of the French term 'Ébéniste' denoting a master cabinet maker capable of working with this wood |
| Elm - A hard, durable wood of yellow brown colour, with strong markings; burr elm is used in veneers |
| Gonçalo Alves - also known as Tigerwood and Zebrawood; reddish brown in colour, strongly marked striations |
| Hare-Wood - the name given to the cut sycamore, stained with ferrous sulphate, and used sparingly in inlays |
| Holly - An ivory white, hard, fine-grained wood, used in inlays and stringing |
| Kingwood - also, Bois Violette, Amaranth, Palisander, Purpleheart and Brazilian Rosewood; From the tropical Americas, strongly marked, colours ranging from yellow through browns, and having a violet hue |
| Laburnum - A hard fine-grained wood, the decorative burr grain used in 'oyster' veneers |
| Lacewood - Striped, and of a highly decorative yellow colour, used as veneers, and obtained from quarter sawn Planes |
| Lignum Vitae - A very heavy dark wood of great strength; sinks in water |
| Lime - A light, soft, but tough and durable white wood, free from knots and cross graining, much used by carvers |
| Mahogany - The best is regarded as Cuban, hard, durable, well marked and easiest to carve; 'Honduras' or 'Spanish' has a less marked grain |
| Maple - A compact, fine-grained white wood, with noted 'birds eye' markings, used for picture frames and drawer linings |
| Oak - A Highly durable dark brown wood of considerable strength; pollarded oak is used in decorative veneers |
| Olive Wood - Of a greenish yellow colour with black cloudy spots and veins |
| Padouk - A hardwood, of a dark red colour, visually akin to mahogany |
| Palisander - See Kingwood |
| Palmwood - Banded, and of chocolate brown colour alternating with a lighter yellow, used sparingly in veneer work |
| Partridgewood - Chocolate brown with darker flecks, resembling the markings of a male partridge, and used sparingly in inlay work |
| Pear - A white, fairly soft, durable wood, often used in carving |
| Pitch Pine - A variety of wood from the North Americas; it is hard and of a striated yellowish colour with reddish tints |
| Plane - A white close-grained wood |
| Pollard Oak and Walnut - The wood of oak and walnut trees that have been polled, cut at the top to give a bushier head, and creating a 'speckled ' marking created by the outgrowth of multiple branches |
| Purple Heart - See Kingwood |
| Rosewood - A hard-wood from the tropics; having a marked grain, with colours ranging from yellow through the browns |
| Sandalwood - A fragrant, insect resistant wood of yellowish hue |
| Satin Walnut - The English name for American Gum; a light brown sometimes with black striped markings |
| Satinwood - A hard, close-grained, heavy wood of yellow colour shading to a golden hue; often with a distinct rippled figuring, and extensively used in Adam, Hepplewhite and Sheraton designs. Originating in both the East and West Indies |
| Snakewood - A rare, very hard heavy wood of yellow colour, mottled with deep brown marks, arranged regularly and bearing a slight resemblance to the markings of a snake |
| Sycamore - A species of maple, hard and even-grained; in its natural state is of a light yellowish colour |
| Teak - A heavy, very hard wood of reddish brown colour |
| Thuya - A North African wood used for inlay work, of a golden brown colour, with small "birds'-eyes" in a halo or circle |
| Tulipwood - A hardwood of yellowish colour with reddish stripes; it is usually cut across the grain and used in veneers for crossbanding |
| Walnut - A fairly hard fine-grained wood of rich brown colour, veined and shaded with darker browns |
| Yew - A very hard, tough, pliable wood of orange red or dark brown colour, with strong markings |
| Zebra Wood - see Gonçalo Alves |
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