Common Name(s): Lignum Vitae
Scientific Name: Guaiacum officinale, G. sanctum
Distribution: Central America and northern South America
Tree Size: 20-30 ft (6-10 m) tall, 1-2 ft (.3-.6 m) trunk diameter
Average Dried Weight: 84 lbs/ft3 (1,350 kg/m3)
Basic Specific Gravity: 1.02
Hardness: 4,500 lbf (20,020 N)
Rupture Strength: 17,760 lbf/in2 (122,490 kPa)
Elastic Strength: 2,304,000 lbf/in2 (15,890 MPa)
Crushing Strength: 11,400 lbf/in2 (78.6 MPa)
Shrinkage: Radial: 5.0%, Tangential: 8.0%, Volumetric: 13.0%, T/R Ratio: 1.6

Color/Appearance:
 Heartwood color can range from a pale yellowish olive, to a deeper forest green or dark brown to almost black. Grain has a unique feathered pattern when viewed up close. The color tends to darken with age, especially upon exposure to light. Color of genuine Lignum Vitae tends to be darker than that of Argentine Lignum Vitae.

Grain/Pore:
 Lignum Vitae has a fine texture and closed pores. Bare wood can be polished to a fine luster due to its high natural oil content. The grain tends to be interlocked and tight.
Endgrain: Diffuse-porous; small pores in no specific arrangement; exclusively solitary; mineral deposits occasionally present; growth rings usually indistinct; rays not visible without lens; apotracheal parenchyma diffuse-in-aggregates, paratracheal parenchyma vasicentric.

Durability:
 Lignum Vitae is reported to be very durable for outdoor use and is also very resistant to insect attack.

Workability:
 Lignum Vitae has a tendency to skip over-top jointer cutters on account of its extremely high density, and very light passes are recommended. Lignum Vitae will also dull cutters, and overall is considered quite difficult to work. Also, due to its high oil content and hardness, it is very difficult to get a strong and reliable glue joint. However, Lignum Vitae is an exceptional wood for turning on the lathe, and finishes well.

Scent:
 Lignum Vitae has a distinct, perfume-like fragrance that lingers even after it has been machined.

Safety:
 Lignum Vitae has been reported to cause skin irritation. See the articles Wood Allergies and Toxicity and Wood Dust Safety for more information.


Price/Availability:
 Trade of Lignum Vitae is restricted in CITES Appendix II, and prices for genuine Lignum Vitae are accordingly very high: and usually from questionable sources. Lignum Vitae is typically sold by the pound, (instead of the more common board-foot measurement), and since it is the heaviest wood in the world, this also makes it considerably expensive.

Comments:
  Lignum Vitae is regarded by most to be both the heaviest and hardest wood in the world. Its durability in submerged or ground-contact applications is also exceptional. Lignum Vitae has been used for propeller shaft bearings on ships, and its natural oils provide self-lubrication that gives the wood excellent wear resistance.
Unfortunately, Lignum Vitae has been exploited to the brink of extinction, and is now an endangered species. Verawood—a related wood species with similar working properties and characteristics—is commonly used as a substitute, and is sometimes called Argentine Lignum Vitae. Yet even this species (Bulnesia sarmientoi) has been included in CITES Appendix III, though it is not as restrictive as Appendix II where Lignum Vitae is found.
Though Verawood is in a different Genus than Lignum Vitae, (Bulnesia and Guaiacum, respectively) both genera are biologically classified in the same Family: Zygophyllaceae. Both woods are extremely hard, heavy, oily, and have a feathered grain pattern with a distinct brownish olive color.
The name Lignum Vitae is Latin, and means tree of life, or wood of life, which is derived from the tree’s many medicinal uses. Some common uses for Lignum Vitae include: tool handles, mallet heads, bearings, bushings, pulley wheels, and turned objects.