Figure (wood)

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Mountain ash floor, showing some fiddleback figure MountainAshFloor.jpg
Mountain ash floor, showing some fiddleback figure

In wood, figure refers to the appearance of wood, as seen on a longitudinal surface (side-grain).

Description

Typically figured red gum table RedGumTable.jpg
Typically figured red gum table
Birdseye figure in Northern Sugar Maple lumber boards Birdseye Maple Lumber.jpg
Birdseye figure in Northern Sugar Maple lumber boards

In wood, figure refers to the appearance of wood, as seen on a longitudinal surface (side-grain). A figured wood is not plain.

The figure of a particular piece of wood is, in part, due to its grain and, in part, due to the cut, or to innate properties of the wood.

Types

A few of the tropical hardwoods, like the rosewoods, may have a unique figure. Types of figure include:

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