Brazilwood is a common name for several trees of the family Leguminosae (pulse family) whose wood yields a red dye called brazilein. The bright red wood, which takes a high shine, is used in carpentry and for making violin bows. Portuguese explorers used this name for a similar South American tree (Caesalpinia echinata and C. brasiliensis), from which the name Brazil for its native land is derived. The name is said to come from "brasa", Portuguese for "ember," owing to its red hue. Cesalpina echinata sp - Brazilwood tree File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Subfamilies Faboideae Caesalpinioideae Mimosoideae References GRIN-CA 2002-09-01 The Family Fabaceae (also as Family Leguminosae) is a grouping of plants in the Order Fabales, and one of the largest families of flowering plants with 650 genera and over 18,000 species. ... Varieties of soybean seeds, a popular legume The term legume has two closely related meanings in botany, a situation encountered with many botanical common names of useful plants whereby an applied name can refer to either the plant itself, or to the edible fruit (or useful part). ... A dye can generally be described as a coloured substance that has an affinity to the substrate to which it is being applied. ... A carpenter is a skilled craftsman who performs carpentry -- a wide range of woodworking that includes constructing buildings, furniture, and other large objects out of wood. ... The violin is a stringed musical instrument that has four strings tuned a fifth apart. ... The Republic of Portugal (Portuguese: República Portuguesa) is a democratic republic located on the west and southwest parts of the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe, the westernmost country in continental Europe. ... South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ... The Federative Republic of Brazil (República Federativa do Brasil in Portuguese) is the largest and most populous country in South America, and fifth largest in the world. ...

Brazilwood (Caesalpinia echinata) is also known as "Pau-Brasil" or "Pau-de-Pernambuco".

Historical importance

In the 15th and 16th centuries, brazilwood was highly valued in Europe and quite difficult to get. Coming from Asia, it was used mainly to extract its red dye in powder form, which was used in the manufacture of luxury textiles, such as velvet, in high demand during the Renaissance, When Portuguese navigators discovered present-day Brazil, in April 21st 1500, they immediately saw that brazilwood was extremely abundant in the Brazilian coast and hinterland, along the rivers. In a few years, a hectic and very profitable operation for felling and transporting by shipping all the brazilwood logs they could get was established, as a crown-granted Portuguese monopoly. The rich commerce which soon followed stimulated other nations to try to harvest and smuggle brazilwood contraband out of Brazil, or even corsairs attacking loaded Portuguese ships in order to steal their cargo. For example, the unsuccessful attempt of a French expedition led by Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon, vice-admiral of Brittany and corsair under the King, in 1555, to establish a colony in present-day Rio de Janeiro (France Antarctique) was motivated in part by the bounty generated by economic exploitation of brazilwood. World map showing location of Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is geologically and geographically a peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia. ... World map showing location of Asia A satellite composite image of Asia Asia is the central and eastern part of the continent of Eurasia, defined by subtracting the European peninsula from Eurasia. ... This article is about the type of fabric. ... This article is about velvet, the fabric. ... By Region: Italian Renaissance Northern Renaissance -French Renaissance -German Renaissance -English Renaissance The Renaissance was a great cultural movement which brought about a period of scientific revolution and artistic transformation, at the dawn of modern European history. ... For another article about a different type of logging, see data logging. ... This article is about economic monopoly. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Contraband consists of items of which possession may be illegal, depending on the variety and the country or the age or sex of the possessor. ... Corsair can refer to: a pirate who used to operate in the Mediterranean Sea, see Corsair (pirate) a French airline, see: Corsair (airline) several aircraft of the US Navy: the O2U Corsair the F4U Corsair the A-7 Corsair II a kind of fireworks a poem, The Corsair, by Lord... Nicolas Durand de Villegaignon, born 1510 in Villegaignon, Seine et Marne, France was a naval officer (vice-admiral of Brittany) who attempted to help the Huguenots in France escape persecution. ... Traditional coat of arms This article is about the historical duchy and French province, as well as the cultural area of Brittany. ... Ipanema beach A NASA satellite image of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro (meaning River of January in Portuguese) is the name of both a state and a city in southeastern Brazil. ... France Antarctique was the failed French colony south of the Equator, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, between 1555 and 1567. ...

Excessive exploitation (it has been estimated that in the first two centuries, more than 50 million trees were destroyed) finally led to a steep decrease in the number of brazilwood trees in the 18th century, causing the collapse of this economic activity. Presently, brazilwood is practically extinct in most parts of the country. The trade of brazilwood is therefore likely to be banned in the immediate future, creating a major problem in the bow-making industry which mainly relies on this wood. In biology and ecology, extinction is the ceasing of existence of a species or group of species. ...