Jindai

The black wood (red mark in photo) is called Katsura-jindai. Jindai means the age of the gods. as a name of wood, it's used to mean ancient (traditional) wood. Katsura wood are not originally black color it's beige color. However, if left underground for a long time, it will gradually turn black color. It has been buried for about 1000 years or over. Then, they are discovered by chance during development work etc.. They are not rotten, but are turning into like charcoal. That's why it's black. So it is very soft and delicate. Care must be taken when handling. I sometimes use Katsura-jindai and Keyaki-jindai. Black is a good accent to the secret box design.