Although small at 1″ thick this Russian birch was wonderful to work with. The seller said he got this burl within 400 miles of Chernobyl but said neither he nor the wood glowed! His drying method is to boil in salt water for 6 hours. Due to the thinness and curvature of the burl I decided to add a 1/4″ chestnut base to finish the piece. Total width is 16″