Macassar Ebony

With a heartwood that is dark brown to black interspersed with contrasting bands of yellow to golden brown, Macassar ebony yields a bold and attractive look by offsetting the darkest of the dark woods with a variety of color. With a heartwood that is dark brown to black interspersed with contrasting bands of yellow to golden brown, Macassar ebony yields a bold and attractive look by offsetting the darkest of the dark woods with a variety of color. It is a very dramatic wood.

The trees are native to the Celebes Islands, which are also called the Sulawesi Islands of the East Indies. It is also found in Maluku and Borneo, known as the Greater Sunda Islands of Indonesia.

Ebony has an interesting history, filled with myths and legends. "Believed to be an antidote to poison," The Encyclopedia of Wood notes, "ebony was popular with the ancients for use in drinking vessels — such was their perennial agony. The Greek historian Herodotus records that Ethiopia paid an annual tribute of 200 ebony logs to the Persian Empire. Most supplies came from India and Sri Lanka, so it was not readily available in Europe until the 1600s.