Cut rosewood logs sit in a large pile. These logs, the exact species of which are unknown, are in Madagascar, one of the hot spots of global rosewood trade.

For millennia, the Wounaan people, who live in parts of what is now Panama and Colombia, have hewn and sculpted various woods. Cocobolo rosewood, Dalbergia retusa, is particularly favored for carving ceremonial staffs used in traditional medicine and commercial art depicting tropical plants and animals.

Originally published on theconversation.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.

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