The most expensive wood options around the world!

Most expensive woods


Did you ever notice why the price of the furniture made from various woods is so different? Mostly it depends on how rare the wood is actually. The world’s most expensive woods are used to make fine art pieces, musical equipment, pieces of rare jewelry, kitchen utensils, and pencils.  If you would like to know in detail about the world’s most expensive wood forms, then keep on reading.

Most expensive woods

Wood comes from the springs and roots of various trees and from other woody plants as well. The list below will brief you about the most expensive woods present around the globe.

 Dalbergia ($16 per foot)

It is a very unique type of wood because it is mainly found in India and it is incredibly difficult to get there since it continues to grow in such thick forests that nobody can reach. It belongs to the family Albertina, which is recognized as an amazing genus, ranging from small to medium-sized trees.  This wood is very difficult to deal with and cannot even be handled by most trained people as well. However, the few people who choose this project end up making genuinely beautiful and rare products. For years, Dalbergia has been used for acoustic guitars instead of Brazilian rosewood, but it is also suitable for many other applications. Dalbergia floors and floor decorations are chosen by some owners because of the elegance of the grain and how durable it is. It is also known as Rosewood, which includes a lot of color variance, which allows consumers to select whether they want a golden brown light or something darker and more purplish.

Ebony ($10,000 per Kilogram)

The exceptional near-black ebony wood is harvested from a variety of different species of Diospyro-like trees that grow across the Tropics. It covers a layer of pure white wood, two inches thick, around a deep, almost black core of charcoal. The wood has an extremely beautiful is rare texture, but it is hard enough to be handled. This wood offers flat grain that is dark in color and can be turned into a high gloss wood after polishing. For use as piano keys, decorative pieces, and valuable furniture this is extremely valuable. Ebony is also very thick and strong, and it is going to sink into the water. Some ebony species can appear almost greenish-black, including those grown in the United States.

Sandalwood ($20,000 per Kilogram)

Sandalwood is correlated with aromatic wood, one of the most expensive woods found in the world. It comes from a slow-growing tree located all over Southeast Asia and the South Pacific Islands. It is mostly used for Oriental rituals and religious rites. It is used for Brahman caste marks and sachets in its powdered form and the oil is an ingredient in colognes, fragrances, soaps, and scented candles. It’s also a part of traditional medicine. Moreover, it is also well known for its furniture and antique boxes. Sandalwood is now planted and harvested commercially in Australia, mainly for its oil.

Pink Ivory ($8 per foot)

The name Red Ivory is also popular with this type of African wood. It is an extremely rare wood and is prized because of its unique color. The brighter the color of this wood, the more brilliant and better it will look. It can go from pinkish brown to brilliant deep, almost purple-red tones. This unique, unusual wood is strong and hard and has a fine texture and is native to South Africa, mainly Zimbabwe, Mozambique, and Southern Africa, where harvesting is commercially sustainable and controlled. The even grain present in this wood makes it an ideal option for a wide range of applications, including cutlery, chessmen, billiards, and veneers. Most people use it within their homes by making fine furnishings with pink ivory because when it is correctly used, it gives a great accent.

African Blackwood ($10,000 per kilogram)

This is potentially one of the rarest as well as expensive species of wood on the earth. This wood is typically almost entirely black, though there are many variations in its tone. Fine pores usually need not be filled in African Blackwood. The heartwood is very long-lasting in terms of deterioration and can be more resistant than other wood forms to water damage. It is usually used to make musical instruments and anyone who can purchase one will pay pretty much for it. While this tree has a unique scent, it is not almost as bad as the scent of certain other timber. It is highly resistant to heat as well and can be used in small pipes. The contrast of this wood with many other wood colors and textures makes it ideal for decoration, and because it is so durable and sturdy, it can be beautifully carved and will exhibit incredible details.

Agar Wood ($10,000 per kilogram)

Agar wood is precious wood found in Southeast Asian tropical forests. It is part of the dark heartwood tree Aquilaria. It extracts oil that has an aroma which is more valuable than gold and is part of the aphrodisiac group. The loss of wild resources is one of the key reasons why Agar wood is so rare and extremely expensive as well. This wood is very light in weight and is pale in color. On special plantations in the jungle, Agarwood is harvested. After drying, the resultant wood may be instantly used for the disinfection of premises, as a scent, or as a raw material in the manufacturing of fish oil. It is also being used for therapeutic purposes for thousands of years and is still used in Ayurvedic, Tibetan, and ancient East Asian medicines. The market for such wood has risen and it has become a costly commodity.

Ironwood or Lignum vitae ($90 per foot)

Lignum vitae is commonly called the tree of life, primarily because of its slow growth rate. It belongs to the Guaiacum Lignum family, which is mainly found on the northern shore of the Caribbean region. An iron tree is very rare in nature. Their wood is very durable, solid, and high in density. Due to its high oil content found naturally in this wood, it can be finished, producing a very fine gloss finish that can be manufactured easily. This timber is an excellent outdoor choice, given its longevity, hardness, and resistance to insect attacks. Lignum Vitae is available in several different colors from a light olive hue to a darker grassy color, depending on the tree itself and how the wood has been worked up, finished, and aged. This wood gives a nice light scent when it is being processed. This wood is also used for the production of strong mailbox heads, instrument handles, bearings, and turned objects. Art products and decorative plywood is also manufactured from this wood.

Amaranth, Purple Heart ($11.99 per feet)

The Purple Heart is one of the most uniquely colored woods. Although it is dull in color when cut newly, then this wood is dried up and turned into a profound eggplant color, and many people found it extremely beautiful. As it ages, it keeps changing colors and finally ends in a dark brown color, with just little violet touches. In order to prevent this change, buyers can use a finish that prevents UV light when they finish the wood. It has several uses, including heavy construction, flooring, boatbuilding, and manufacturing of furniture. The wood is beautiful and works because of its intensity. It is also waterproof, so it is widely used in boatbuilding. Its durability makes it a great flooring choice but is quite expensive. It is a very durable wood that, except the marine borer, can withstand most pests. It can also prevent decay, hence it’s long-lasting than most of the other expensive woods. This group’s commercial species are common in the area of tropical America.

Bubinga ($18.99 per foot)

Bubinga wood is a very rare and valuable species of timber. A wide variety of colors is offered. This means that lighter stroke wood and darker wood, which looks reddish-brown, is easily available. Heavy and thick wood has different annual rings and normally offer a good texture as the fiber growth direction and other growth differences are frequently changed. This wood can be utilized in many ways, partially as the wood is so wide and can be used to make large wood plates for tabletops as well as other projects. Bubinga doors will never break or warp and can last for centuries if properly looked after. It offers various grain features and stands out from other wood styles and manufactures unique furniture.

Cocobolo ($65 per board foot)

Cocobolo is a wood of Central America commonly admired by owners of costly weapons and knives. This is a beautiful wood, with dark traces passing by the grain from orange to reddish-brown. Just the center of the wood is being used and the color of the heartwood after being cut is rare. Cocobolo is thick and durable, can be polished to a bright finish, and provides a lovely tone. The wood is cherished by musicians and chess players as much as the sportspeople. It is used for the making of guitars, flutes, violins, and bagpipes and the manufacturing of chess pieces and grips with arms.

Koa ($62 per board foot)

This wood appearance is similar to Mahogany and is a native species found in the Hawaiian Islands. Since some of Hawaii’s natural forests are being destroyed to be used as agricultural land, and trees and shrubs are the favorite choices of grazing animals, this wood is becoming rare as expensive day by day. It’s famous for making guitars and skeletons, and its golden and light red-bright colors and simple grain texture makes it an attractive choice for the manufacturing of cabinets and furniture. On the island, koa bowls are frequently used and portray preferred tourist souvenirs.

Holly ($ 40 per foot)

American Holly is an outstanding white wood for turning, painting, carving as well as inlay applications. It is also widely known for piano and organ keys, and inlay lines mostly because of its pale, almost white coloration and its seamless surface texture. Holly trees, however, grow slowly and are small, making them extremely rare. Holly offers a unique feature of fungal bleach that has a blue-gray tone, which must be harvested and quickly allowed to dry in cold weather.

Ziricote ($60 per board foot)

Ziricote is a heavy wood and is mostly known because of its unique spider-webbing pattern. It is available in medium to dark brown color and is found in Mexico and Central America. It is widely used for the manufacture of furniture like cabinets. Many musical instruments like the guitar and violin are also made from this wood. It is renowned because of its decay-resistance feature and longevity. Some of its species are also available in green or purple color.

Bacote ($32.99 per board foot)

 It is a very unique tree that is found in the Caribbean, Mexican, and South of America. Bacote is linked with Cordia. The Cordia is the kind of plant that can be found in the families of borage. It is the most expensive wood you can buy on the planet due to the great demand for this wood. The wood is distinguished by its unique beautiful texture with general brown-black stains. This can be used not only to make beautiful furnishings, but also musical equipment, explosions, ships, and little turned objects. It is a very durable wood that can last for a longer period of time.

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Christophe Rude

Christophe Rude

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