Here’s a heavy one, handmade from two of the densest woods in the world, both carry the common name “lignum” . The handle is genuine lignum and it holds the record of being the densest wood in the whole world! Genuine lignum, or Guayacan, is very scarce as available material or as a tree, its an endangered species and trade restricted, the result of hundred of years of harvesting for its special wood. The shaft is a very similar wood, also called lignum, but more accurately called Verawood. Also among the densest woods in the world, its similar in color and grain but is usually more green and gets greener over time with exposure to light. Verawood is also a rare wood, difficult to source in long lengths and very expensive but this species is still traded.

Moving the cane into the “ancient” category is the divider, a piece of rib bone from an extinct mammal, the Steller's Sea Cow. The Steller's Sea Cow went extinct in the late 1700's due to over hunting just a few decades after the animal was first discovered by western explorers. The bone used in this cane was discovered by the native Inuit people on St. Lawrence island in the Bering Sea, it is an ancient bone that was excavated from ancient Inuit hunting grounds. The bone is likely several thousand years old. The Steller's Sea Cow was the largest animal of its kind and the bones are denser than any other marine animal. It remains to tell the story of how fragile nature is.

This is a heavy cane, among my heaviest. Users of small stature may tire with use. Total length measures 38" and can be shortened to fit.

The last image shows a lignum tree in its native range in bloom.

M A T E R I A L S

Handle – Guayacan (Genuine Lignum) from Central America
Divider – Ancient Steller’s Sea Cow Bone and brass
Shaft – Verawood from S. America
Rubber tip

Every Gillis Cane is a photographed original, you’ll always receive the exact cane in the images.