amboyna

amboyna (am-BOY-nah) - n., a tree of southeast Asia and Indonesia, Pterocarpus indicus; the reddish, mottled wood of this tree, used in furniture and musical instruments.


The wood is also called padauk and (in the Philippines) narra. There are similar trees throughout the region, some also prized for their decorative wood, but none seem to be quite so striking. Named after Amboina Island, now called Ambon, in the Molaccas Islands, now called Maluku, in Indonesia.


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---L.