Death Wood is the type of blank a person would kill for. This one is maple, but it is nice. It has been planed, no sanding, with a shot of clear lacquer to show the grain. I will be carving it in a few days. I know most folks hate maple, but the figure sure looks good! The more it is sanded (meaning finer grit) the better it looks. This wood shows more figure and takes on a darker color when given a nice oil finish, and the grain still is a killer! Yep, the tiger goes all the way through.