CROWN INDIAN MAHOGANY

Also known as: Cuban-type Mahogany, Malabar Mahogany

Botanical Name: Swietenia mahogani

Origin: India

Description: Cuban and Spanish Mahogany, also known as West Indian Mahogany, was long regarded as the finest cabinet timber of all, with the best veneers always commanding high prices. However material from these sources has long been unobtainable. During the 19th. century these trees began to be planted in southern India where they have thrived in their original plantations and also as ornamental specimens elsewhere. Felling is controlled and there is a strict policy of replanting. Supplies are limited and many logs are apt to be pippy, but it is possible to find good clean material which gives a finishing quality far above most other Mahogany types.