On 16 Aug 2004 09:50:28 -0000, Jerry Built
wrote:

It is not a home-made article, it was purchased from a Dept.
store in 1949. It is rather puzzling. I would like to know
what this stuff is, since I have never heard of such being
used in furniture before. This stuff is quite hard, it is
possible to carve slivers off, which break up to some
extent (like trying to carve solid dry plaster, for instance).
The panels are quite rigid.

Asbestos cement sheet often has one smooth side and one closely
dimpled with each "dimple" about 3-4mm in size. The sheet is very
heavy (it's largely cement) and very rigid. It wouldn't usually be
something you could easily take shavings off with a knife.

An awful lot of very odd materials were used post war to make
wallboard as import restrictions were still in place and factories
built for war production of things like bakelite sheet tried to find
other materials to make.

--
Peter Parry.
http://www.wpp.ltd.uk/