Gopher wood mystery
Posted: Tue Nov 22, 2005 1:01 am
No one knows what gopher wood was. Some have hazarded guesses, but it remains a mystery.
Here is a possibility that might explain it.
If you have ever seen some gophers tunnels, you would have seen some little piles of dirt, and rocks, etc., which they push out from where the tunnel was dug.
Here is a story to be taken with a grain of salt, meant to illustrate that Gopher 'wood' may be stronger than we thought.--A long time ago, there used to be men who were skilled in many areas, such as farming, vineyards, and music. Gen 4:20 "And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. 22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: "
One day, one of the metalworkers made a strong substance from an idea he got looking at a gopher's pile of dirt. One simply took some natural resin and sand, coated a log, or almost anything one wanted, poured in the iron, or metal, and presto, when dry the formed metal log was now ready. My, I think I'll call this gopher wood, he thought, and the name stuck, in that pre flood ancient world. Imagine a boat built of this stuff? Or, perhaps the frame, hull etc where support was crucial, and maybe the outside finished with oak, or some wood, then everything sealed with pitch?!
Now, if it was anything at all like this, why, no wonder the poor guys translating the bible could not figure out what kind of 'wood' gopher wood was!
Have times changed? Oh, yes, but when we look, we see some things may be similar in some ways.
"What is the Sand Cast Process?
It is the process where moist bonded or resin coated sand is firmly packed around a wood or metal pattern of the item(s) to be made. The wood and/or metal pattern is then removed and the resulting cavity is filled with the molten metal. Once the cavity is filled the mold undergoes air drying. The mold(s) are then removed to be cut from the gate and runner as individual pieces. "
"
Most versatile & low-cost method of casting.
Strength and lightness in certain light metal alloys.
Good bearing qualities are obtained in sand casted metals.
Extremely large, heavy metal objects may be cast when they would be difficult or economically impossible to produce otherwise.
Suitable for Ferrous & Non-Ferrous materials void of limitations such as size, shape or weight.
Suitable for low or unlimited quantities making this method ideally economical.
The most intricate of shapes, both external and internal, may be cast. "
http://www.atlasbronze.com/sand_casting.html
Here is a possibility that might explain it.
If you have ever seen some gophers tunnels, you would have seen some little piles of dirt, and rocks, etc., which they push out from where the tunnel was dug.
Here is a story to be taken with a grain of salt, meant to illustrate that Gopher 'wood' may be stronger than we thought.--A long time ago, there used to be men who were skilled in many areas, such as farming, vineyards, and music. Gen 4:20 "And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle. 21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ. 22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: "
One day, one of the metalworkers made a strong substance from an idea he got looking at a gopher's pile of dirt. One simply took some natural resin and sand, coated a log, or almost anything one wanted, poured in the iron, or metal, and presto, when dry the formed metal log was now ready. My, I think I'll call this gopher wood, he thought, and the name stuck, in that pre flood ancient world. Imagine a boat built of this stuff? Or, perhaps the frame, hull etc where support was crucial, and maybe the outside finished with oak, or some wood, then everything sealed with pitch?!
Now, if it was anything at all like this, why, no wonder the poor guys translating the bible could not figure out what kind of 'wood' gopher wood was!
Have times changed? Oh, yes, but when we look, we see some things may be similar in some ways.
"What is the Sand Cast Process?
It is the process where moist bonded or resin coated sand is firmly packed around a wood or metal pattern of the item(s) to be made. The wood and/or metal pattern is then removed and the resulting cavity is filled with the molten metal. Once the cavity is filled the mold undergoes air drying. The mold(s) are then removed to be cut from the gate and runner as individual pieces. "
"
Most versatile & low-cost method of casting.
Strength and lightness in certain light metal alloys.
Good bearing qualities are obtained in sand casted metals.
Extremely large, heavy metal objects may be cast when they would be difficult or economically impossible to produce otherwise.
Suitable for Ferrous & Non-Ferrous materials void of limitations such as size, shape or weight.
Suitable for low or unlimited quantities making this method ideally economical.
The most intricate of shapes, both external and internal, may be cast. "
http://www.atlasbronze.com/sand_casting.html
