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Well, I made a short trip yesterday to buy a recessed trestle legged table that I saw in a Craigslist ad. Here are some photos of the table as shown in the ad, plus a close up of the grain that I took on my way back home.
The type of wood turned out to be a complete surprise for me, and I'm happy to share what I now know and why it looks the way it does, but I thought it might be fun to have my fellow members make some guesses.
So, have at it....what type of wood?
I think picture one is a kitty cat finish, looks like a reddish wood, but the grain does not look tight enough to be mahogany or rosewood. You are in Florida, how about cypress or cedar? Sharon
What a lovely table! I have no idea about woods, but the one that sprang to mind was teak. No idea why! 😆
Hello Greeno,
Surprised you ask about wood. The only descriptor for wood is fire ..lol As far as the timber is concerned your table appears to be from the pterocarpus family. This genus includes various varieties including the Padauks and Narra-Mukwa. The grain in your first photo with those whitish flecks looks a little like the rarest Padauk , Amboyna. I doubt it is Amboyna it would be rare to find such large cuts. People sometimes people are disappointed if you tell them that their item is Padauk they don't realize that Zitan comes from the same family.
It is fun to play name the timber but you have the advantage as you can feel the weight and density plus see the underside and possible true color. Would be interested if the timber has any odour or scent. I would like to know what 'Kity cat Finish is as well.
Michael
@brettm You shouldn't count yourself out! It is ZITAN, crazy as it may seem. You have a great eye.... better than mine!
When I saw the ad originally, I had hopes of it being huanghuali because of its beautiful honey color and grain, but I had recognized the grain was a bit soft, so my expectations were not too high.
The more logical thought for me that came to mind was it was a nice piece of common rosewood that had been bleached from the sun. You can also see that the top has a thick layer of clear shellac ... almost like someone melted a layer of plastic to the top. Whomever had made the decision to do that really should be locked up.
The night before driving down to buy the table, I had found a Sotheby's listing of a similar size and dimension table (this table is about 8 feet long) of a hardwood table, attributed to 1900 period, that sold for about $4,000 in 2014. So, I knew regardless of the wood, I was making a very good purchase.
However, when I arrived and saw the table in person, that's when I was pleasantly surprised.
First, the seller had to help me move the table. An 8 foot long single plank rosewood table would have been no problem, but this table weighs a ton! I haven't measured the thickness of the plank, but I threw my back out putting it into my van, even with the help of the seller.
This is about when I took a photo of the crab claw grain that I posted in my 'name the wood' quiz.
Once home, I inspected the table and found it has a repaired leg and the other three feet were shortened by about 3". You might think this would come as bad news, but not really.
Repairs indicate that a piece of furniture is worth saving, this would not be done with common rosewood, and the quality of the repairs suggested the table is 18th to early 19th c.
I went about removing the shellac off the top of the table with the orange peel chemical remover (I find it very safe to use and extremely effective). And, in doing so, I was greeted with two more unexpected events.
First, the wood released a very pleasant smell. Huanghuali is well known for being fragrant, but so it zitan. And, as the oils of the orange skin chemical remover entered into the surface of the wood, it also causes the natural pigments of the wood to resurface.
Not only did I remove the terrible clear coat of shellac, but the beautiful color of the zitan came back!
I'm still cleaning years of wax and shellac of the apron and legs, but the top is wonderful! I will post a photo once I return to my building where it is stored!
Michael, I'm very impressed! Great to know that I and so many others have such a great resource to call on when needed!
You guys are impressive with your furniture knowledge. Thanks for posting and sharing this with us, Greeno!
@greeno107 great buy! zitan smells very nice! one of my friends has a zitan comb. it smells so good!
@greeno107 The scratches on the first photo reminded me of a late calico cat pet who liked to make a running jump at a table and then dig in her claws to brake. It was her only fault and she lived a long kitty life. I also later had an English Bulldog who took exception to a new leather chair invading his space, a friend came by and asked, "oh, is that what they call a barbed wire finish to the leather?" I laughed and told her that it is called "a bulldog finish." Sharon
Does it smell like sandalwood? Sharon
P.S. I thought you were going to tell us that it was a trick question and it had been made by a local woodworking hobbyist, you are not tricky enough. Pretty table. Sharon
@brettm So, here is how the top looks now that I have removed the thick coat of shellac and allowed the natural color/dye in the wood to come to the surface.
I still have all the apron and legs to restore, but it shouldn't take more than a day.
@imperialfinegems The age is still a bit of a mystery. A single plank table is fairly rare in later Qing pieces, but perhaps not out of the question.
Once the table has been completely cleaned up, I'll post a few more pics. There are depiction of fruit on the apron that I had thought were the three abundances, but they seem a bit off....certainly don't look like the typical depictions of peach, pomegranate, and citron, so perhaps some other types of fruit that I'm less familiar with.
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