Translated into English without the author’s permission in the late 1960s, “Woodworking in Estonia” has been a cult classic ever since it first surfaced.
Written by Ants Viires and translated by Mart Aru, it is, according to Roy Underhill, “one of the best books on folk woodworking ever” and covers the entire woodworking history of this small Northern European nation from pre-historical times through occupation by the Germans and Soviets up through Estonian independence.
Ants Viires devoted his life to recording the hand-tool folkways of his country without a shred of romanticism. Viires combined personal interviews and direct observation of work habits with archaeological evidence and a thorough scoring of the literature in his country and surrounding nations.
If all this sounds like a dry treatise, it’s not. “Woodworking in Estonia” is an important piece of evidence in understanding how our ancestors worked wood and understood it more intimately than we do. Viires records in great detail everything from the superstitions surrounding the harvesting of wood (should you whistle in the forest?) to detailed descriptions of how the Estonians dried the wood, bent it, steamed it and every buried it in horse dung to shape it for their needs.
While not a book of plans, “Woodworking in Estonia” is a source of immense inspiration for any woodworking looking to forge a close relationship with wood and the things that can be made from it.
Like all Lost Art Press books, “Woodworking in Estonia” is produced entirely in the United States. The hardbound book is 304 pages on heavy paper stock. The pages are sewn and then glued with fiber tape to last lifetimes. And the cover is wrapped in cotton cloth with a foil diestamp.
Ethically brought to you with attention to the original author's wishes and a discounted retail price, Lost Art Press has made owning this historical woodworking classic easier than ever before.
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