African Sapele (Broken Glass Grain) Em
No, the wood is not broken. The grain is somewhat reminiscent of broken glass. Trust me, this is a one piece flute with absolutely no defects. This flute is 26" long, overall. It is not for folks with small or stiff hands. It can be a bit of a stretch even for experienced players.
I'm calling it "Broken Glass" because that's what the person that sold this piece of wood called it. It's not exactly a wavy grain like the Pomelle flute that I'm offering. The angles of the curl in the grain are somewhat sharper.
When you hold this flute out in the sunlight the grain really "pops". The close up photos below should help give you a little better idea of what's going on with this grain. African Sapele has a depth that exceeds that of most other woods after the finish is applied. It's almost like you can just "reach into" the grain. Not only is the flute beautiful to see, the sound is rich and full. You can hear it's sound in the links below.
Listen to this flute here.
Listen to this flute with reverb (canyon sound) here.