Once upon a time there was a magnificent wood that possessed splendid physical characteristics. It was in such demand by the wealthy that bold adventurers relentlessly scoured the remotest jungles of the Caribbean searching for it. In fact, this beautiful wood was so coveted that it was harvested to the point of commercial extinction.
That wood is Cuban Mahogany, the once and future king of all the cabinetwoods. While there are a plethora of woods that go by the trade name mahogany, Cuban Mahogany (Swietenia mahagoni), Honduran Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) and the commercially unimportant Mexican Mahogany (Swietenia humilis) are the only true members of the mahogany genus.
Cuban Mahogany is a wood apart from all others. It is substantially denser and stronger than its closest analog, Honduran Mahogany. It resists rot well and is renowned for its superb dimensional stability. Cuban Mahogany is a fine tonewood, widely sought after for use in expensive musical instruments. It works easily with both hand tools and power tools and also finishes exceptionally well.
The wood’s subtly figured grain and rich, deep reddish-brown tone combine to give it unparalleled beauty. It was, in times past, available in huge boards up to several feet wide, giving high-end woodworkers tremendous artistic flexibility. In short, Cuban Mahogany is, or at least used to be, the ideal wood for fine furniture and cabinet-making.
Cuban Mahogany timber was first exploited for shipbuilding by Spanish explorers shortly after their arrival in the New World. But it wasn’t until the 18th century that it became indispensable to the English and French furniture trades. The finest antique furniture styles – Chippendale, Federal, Sheraton and Empire – all heavily relied on Cuban Mahogany as a primary material.
For the next two centuries the noble specie was cut down in massive quantities for export wherever it was found. To make matters worse, it was also employed for mundane purposes on its native islands such as railroad ties, fence posts and even firewood.
When the end came for the king of woods, it did so suddenly. As late as the 1920s it was still possible to purchase sizable volumes of large, old growth Cuban Mahogany logs. A mere decade later it was not possible.
The tree was not harvested to actual extinction, but merely to commercial extinction, as if it made much difference. In reality, the jungles of the Caribbean had been systematically purged of any large Cuban Mahogany trees. Any specimens lucky enough to escape the almost total extermination were immature, misshapen or otherwise unfit to be converted to lumber.
The ghosts of Cuban Mahogany’s alluring curse still haunt us today. For example, another coveted tropical hardwood, Brazilian Rosewood, has met a very similar fate to its Cuban cousin.
And Honduran Mahogany, the wood that replaced Cuban Mahogany in the fine timber trade due to its similar properties, hasn’t even lasted another 100 years in widespread commercial availability. Most Honduran Mahogany on the market today is either harvested illegally or cut from dedicated plantations in Central America or Southeast Asia.
Cuban Mahogany, on the other hand, can only be sourced sporadically in small amounts from damaged tree salvage or antique furniture that has been broken up for scrap. Cuban Mahogany, the king of woods, is dead; long live the king.