Table Xiii
The white oak beams I salvaged to make this tabletop are from a 1750s farmhouse in Massachusetts which, like most of the buildings of that era, was of post-and-beam construction. The three pieces were once floor joists, each with a tenon cut on both ends to fit precisely into a corresponding mortise in the house beams. Since everything was hand-cut, the craftsmen would label each joist to locate it precisely in a corresponding mortise.
One of the beams still clearly shows the "XIII" a colonial carpenter chiseled into it, and I couldn't help but feature that in this table. 7' long, 26" wide, 1 1/2" thick top, finished with clear shellac. Sitting 30" high, atop blackened steel legs.