Nanmu () is a precious wood that is unique to China and South Asia, and was historically used for boat building, architectural woodworking, furniture and sculptural carving in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. The

Ming dynasty The Ming dynasty, officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming was the last imperial dynasty of ...

-era writings indicate this wood as superior durable

softwood Scots pine, a typical and well-known softwood Softwood is wood from gymnosperm trees such as conifers. The term is opposed to hardwood, which is the wood from angiosperm trees. The main differences between hardwoods and softwoods is that the sof ...

. A recent excavation of a tomb in Lija village in Jing'an County,

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, found 47 coffins made of nanmu wood that are reported to be about 2500 years old, dating back to the

Eastern Zhou The Eastern Zhou (256 BCE) is a period in Chinese history comprising the latter two-thirds of the Zhou dynasty. The period follows the Western Zhou era and is named due to the Zhou royal court relocating the capital eastward from Fenghao ...

dynasty period and belonging to the

Dongyi The Dongyi or Eastern Yi () was a collective term for ancient peoples found in Chinese records. The definition of Dongyi varied across the ages, but in most cases referred to inhabitants of eastern China, then later, the Korean peninsula and Jap ...

State of Xu. The trees that produce nanmu wood are evergreens that have long, straight trunks which grows to 35 meters in height and one meter in diameter. More than 30 varieties exist, which are found south of the

Yangtze River The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...

. There are also nanmu trees on

Hainan Island Hainan is an island province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally means "South of the Sea ...

and in

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. Yangmu nanmu is found in

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

. Zinan nanmu is found in southeast and south central China. Zinanmu nanmu is found in Jiangsu, Anhui, Zhenjiang. Zhennan nanmu is found in Guizhou and Sichuan. The finest of all the nanmu woods is Hongmao Nanmu ('' Phoebe hungmaoensis'') from Hainan Island. Nanmu wood comes from several species of tree, including: * '' Litsea cubeba'' * '' Machilus nanmu'' * '' Phoebe hungmaoensis'' * '' Phoebe zhennan'' It is trees of the Phoebe genus, however, that produce the highest grades of nanmu wood. Phoebe zhennan grain pattern

Nanmu is a knotty wood that frequently shows a wavy or ''quilted'' grain figure. It does not react to humidity and temperature much in the way of expansion or contraction and makes superior furniture which tends not to get loose or crack because of changes in climate. Nanmu woods that are lighter in color and have loose grain are considered inferior. Nanmu was used in architectural woodworking and boatbuilding due to its resistance to decay. The wood dries with little splitting or warping. After drying the wood is of medium-density and does not change shape. Nanmu can be sanded to a mirror finish. The highest grade of nanmu wood has a bright golden color, a pleasant fragrance, and exhibits impressive

chatoyancy In gemology, chatoyancy ( ), also called chatoyance or the cat's eye effect, is an optical phenomenon, optical reflectance effect seen in certain gemstones. (Historically, the term has applied specifically to gems; in woods and other materials ...

(an optical effect) which is why it is often referred to as ''jīnsī'' ( - golden-thread or golden silk) in China. Although recently harvested '' nanmu'' and '' zhennan'' lumber and newly made articles could still be obtained (at extremely high prices) as recently as 2019, it is officially a protected species in China and worldwide. Due to deforestation, disease, and pollution, these species are almost exhausted. Some small semi-natural forest stands and protected artificial forests still exist, but the trees are otherwise now limited to small growths of aging decorative trees in temples, cottages, parks, and courtyards.

Footnotes

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External links

Wood used in Chinese Antique Furniture

Chinese culture Wood Plant common names