Zebrano

Durability:

Non-durable. Liable to attack by insects, and resistant to preservative treatment.

Mechanical Properties:

This hard, heavy, stable timber is mainly used for decorative purposes due to its nature, where strength and mechanical properties are unimportant.

Seasoning:

The material is difficult to dry and requires care in order to avoid surface checking, splitting and distortion. There is small movement in service.

Uses:

  • The main use for zebrano is as sliced decorative veneers for small cabinetwork, flush doors, cross bandings or inlay bandings, fancy goods, marquetry and panelling
  • Bundles of this veneer tend to buckle unless kept under weights
  • Also used by turners and carvers for decorative work
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Description

The heartwood is a light golden-yellow with narrow veining or streaks of dark brown to almost black, giving the quartered surfaces a zebra-stripe appearance. The grain is interlocked or wavy and produces alternating hard and soft grained material which makes the timber difficult to work. Zebrano has a coarse texture and a lustrous surface. Weight 740 kg/m³ (46 lb/ft³); specific gravity .74.

Additional information

Latin Name

Microberlinia brazzavillensis

Family Name

Leguminosae

Distribution

West Africa, chiefly Gabon and Cameroon Republic

Also know as

Zingana (France, Gabon); zebrawood (UK, USA); allene, ele, amouk (Cameroon)

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