One of the critical turning points in the history of woodworking came when mortise-and-tenon joints were developed. Before that, tables were slabs of wood balanced on pedestals, and wooden doors as well as chest sides and ends were wide slabs of wood often reinforced with metal straps. The ability to strongly join the end of a board to the edge of another board changed the game completely.
Wood movement — the eternal gremlin complicating wooden constructions — could now be managed in frame-and-panel doors. The wide panel floated in grooves in the frame, allowing for seasonal wood movement. The frame, securely connected by mortise-and-tenon joints, held the whole construction together.
The same concept allowed much stronger and more elegant panels for chests and other boxes. Leg-to-apron joints were also a big step up from large and bulky pedestals. The possibilities that this joinery method opened up were legion.
The traditional method of using a mortising chisel to form the rectangular opening was a fairly simple process to master. Raising the tenon using a hand saw and chisel required more skill, but it was within the reach of nearly all woodworkers, requiring only three
