   #copyright

Woodworking

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Engineering

   Artists can use woodworking to create delicate sculptures.
   Artists can use woodworking to create delicate sculptures.

   Woodworking is the process of building, making or carving something
   using wood.

History

   Ancient Egyptian woodworking
   Ancient Egyptian woodworking
   Woodworking shop in Germany in 1568, the worker in front is using a bow
   saw and the one in the background is planing
   Woodworking shop in Germany in 1568, the worker in front is using a bow
   saw and the one in the background is planing

   Along with stone, mud, and animal parts, wood was certainly one of the
   first materials worked by primitive human beings. Microwear analysis of
   the Mousterian stone tools used by the Neanderthals show that many were
   used to work wood. Indeed, the development of civilization was closely
   tied to the development of increasingly greater degrees of skill in
   working these materials.

   Among early finds of wooden tools are the worked sticks from Kalambo
   Falls, Clacton-on-Sea and Lehringen. The spears from Schöningen
   (Germany) provide some of the first examples of wooden hunting gear.
   Flint tools were used for carving. Since Neolithic times, carved wooden
   vessels are known, for example from the Linear Pottery culture wells at
   Kückhofen and Eythra. Examples of Bronze Age wood-carving include trees
   worked into coffins from northern Germany and Denmark, and wooden
   folding-chairs. The site of Fellbach-Schmieden in Germany has provided
   fine examples of wooden animal statues from the Iron Age. Wooden idols
   from the La Tène period are known from a sanctuary at the source of the
   Seine in France.

   Two ancient civilizations that used woodworking were the Egyptians and
   the Chinese. Woodworking is depicted in many ancient Egyptian drawings,
   and a considerable amount of ancient Egyptian furniture (such as
   stools, chairs, tables, beds, chests) has been preserved in tombs. As
   well, the inner coffins found in the tombs were also made of wood. The
   metal used by the Egyptians for woodworking tools was originally copper
   and eventually, after 2000 BC bronze as ironworking was unknown until
   much later. Commonly used woodworking tools included axes, adzes,
   chisels, pull saws, and bow drills. Mortise and tenon joints are
   attested from the earliest Presynastic period. These joints were
   strengthened using pegs, dowels and leather or cord lashings. Animal
   glue came to be used only in the New Kingdom period. Ancient Egyptians
   invented the art of veneering and used varnishes whose composition is
   not known as finishes. Although different native acacias were used, as
   was the wood from the local sycomore and tamarisk trees, deforestation
   in the Nile valley resulted in the need for importation of wood,
   notably cedar, but also Aleppo pine, boxwood and oak, starting from the
   Second Dynasty.

   The progenitors of Chinese woodworking are considered to be Lu Ban (魯班)
   and his wife Lady Yun, from the Spring and Autumn Period. Lu Ban is
   said to have brought the plane, chalkline, and other tools to China.
   His teachings are supposedly left behind in the book Lu Ban Jing (魯班經,
   "Manuscript of Lu Ban"), although it was written some 1500 years after
   his death. This book is filled largely with descriptions of dimensions
   for use in building various items—such as flower pots, tables, altars,
   etc.—and also contains extensive instructions concerning Feng Shui, the
   ancient Chinese practice of geomancy. It mentions almost nothing of the
   intricate glueless and nailless joinery for which Chinese furniture was
   so famous.

Tool sharpening

   The cutting and some of the shaping woodworking tools rely upon sharp
   cutting edges to produce a satisfactory finish. Keeping these tools
   sharp is an important aspect of woodworking. There are a large number
   of machine powered and hand powered sharpening methods in use by
   woodworkers, the selection of which is in part determined by the tool
   being sharpened and part personal preference. Some tools, such as
   chisels and plane blades, are commonly sharpened by the owner, others,
   such as saw blades and machinery knives, are more often sent to a
   sharpening specialist.

Sharpening paraphernalia

     * Diamond plate
     * File
     * Grinder
     * Saw set
     * Sharpening jig
     * Waterstone
     * Whetstone or Oil stone
     * Grinding dresser

Sharpening methods

   Scary sharp - a method using paper-backed coated abrasives or sandpaper
   and a flat surface, such as plate glass.

Woodworkers

     * Alvar Aalto
     * Norm Abram
     * John Boson
     * Mike Dunbar
     * Tage Frid
     * Eileen Gray
     * Garrett Hack
     * R. Bruce Hoadley
     * James Krenov
     * John Makepeace
     * Sam Maloof
     * David J. Marks
     * Joseph Moxon
     * George Nakashima
     * Thomas Nixon
     * Alan Peters
     * Scott Phillips
     * André Jacob Roubo
     * Henry O. Studley
     * Roy Underhill
     * Sir Neville Wilkinson

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodworking"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
