Pau Preto

  • Common Name(s): African blackwood, mpingo (Swahili), grenadilla
  • Scientific Name: Dalbergia melanoxylon
  • Distribution: Dry savanna regions of central and southern Africa
  • Tree Size: 20-30 ft (6-9 m) tall, 2-3 ft (.6-1.0 m) trunk diameter
  • Average Dried Weight: 79 lbs/ft3 (1,270 kg/m3)
  • Specific Gravity (Basic, 12% MC): 1.08, 1.27
  • Janka Hardness: 3,670 lbf (16,320 N)
  • Modulus of Rupture: 30,970 lbf/in2(213.6 MPa)
  • Elastic Modulus: 2,603,000 lbf/in2(17.95 GPa)
  • Crushing Strength: 10,570 lbf/in2(72.9 MPa)
  • Shrinkage: Radial: 2.9%, Tangential: 4.8%,
  • Volumetric: 7.7%, T/R Ratio: 1.7
  • Color/Appearance: Often completely black, with little or no discernible grain. Occasionally slightly lighter, with a dark brown or purplish hue. The pale yellow sapwood is usually very thin, and is clearly demarcated from the darker heartwood.
  • Grain/Texture: Grain is typically straight; fine, even
  • texture and good natural luster.
  • Rot Resistance: Heartwood is rated as very durable in regards to decay resistance, though only moderately resistant to insects/borers. The lighter colored sapwood is commonly attacked by powder-post beetles and other borers.
  • Odor: African blackwood has a mild—though distinctive—scent while being worked.
  • Common Uses: Musical instruments (guitars, clarinets, oboes, etc.), inlay, carving, tool handles, and other turned objects.
  • Comments: To be considered the original ebony, African Blackwood was imported and used in Ancient Egypt thousands of years ago. Even the name “ebony” has an Egyptian derivation as “hbny”—which has been shown to refer to primarily to Dalbergia melanoxylon, rather than the species which are considered to be ebony today: such as those in the Diospyros genus. In addition, African blackwood is technically in the Rosewood genus (Dalbergia), and is more stable and resistant to movement and warping than other types of ebony.
  • African blackwood is considered to be among the hardest and densest of woods in the world; indeed, among some 285 species tested, (including Lignum Vitae), Gabriel Janka originally found African Blackwood to be the very hardest. Unfortunately, many online sources list African blackwood’s Janka hardness at only ~1700lbf—which seems very unlikely given its confirmed specific gravity.