This post is part of a series revealing the table of contents of upcoming Issue Twenty. As is our custom, we’ll be discussing one article per weekday in order to give you a taste of what is to come.
The subscription window that includes Issue Twenty is open now.
To get Issue Twenty when it ships in early April, you can sign up for a subscription here.
If you aren’t sure about your subscription status, you can reach out to Grace at info@mortiseandtenonmag.com. Keep in mind though, if you are set to auto-renew, you never have to worry about getting the next issue of Mortise & Tenon. Issue Twenty is coming your way soon!
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Randy S. Wilkinson with Dr. Richard R. Hark – “In Search of True Mahogany”
The vivid patterns and vibrant colors of figured mahogany are the stuff of furniture-making dreams. This wood cuts easily, planes to a polish, wears enduringly, and looks great in the parlor of any 18th-century home. But the trouble is, there are many imposters – mahogany look-alikes, whose grain or feel can confound even experts in the field. How can true mahogany be identified?
Through some fascinating sleuthing, Dr. Richard Hark, a conservation scientist at Yale, and Randy Wilkinson, a renowned furniture conservator, have explored this question with all the resources available. They have assessed microscopy, chemical analysis, and even laser spectroscopy on antique furniture and have made a number of discoveries that could throw open the curtains on mahogany identification. And rather than some of the destructive methods of wood analysis used in years past, these new methods leave nary a scratch on those timeless pieces of furniture.
For Issue Twenty, Wilkinson and Hark tell an engaging tale. From the rain forests of Honduras to the laboratories of Yale University to the dark inner recesses of early American furniture, their work sheds a great deal of light on the mystery and identification of true mahogany.
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