# Lectern Anatomy

Take apart a wooden pedestal lectern: its base, post, sloping desk and book ledge, and why each one is shaped the way it is

By Rafa \| Madhouse

Topic: Machines

[Open the interactive Jig](https://ask.jig.com/j/LtEA4JnhISt2)

## Guide

### 1. Meet the lectern

A lectern is a stand that holds a book or notes while someone reads aloud\. This wooden one was designed as a prop for a fantasy TV series\. Let's find out what each part does, and why it is shaped that way\.

Drag anywhere around the lectern to turn it\.

### 2. Just four parts

Watch it come apart\. The whole lectern is four pieces of wood: a flat base, a tall square post, a sloping desk and a thin ledge\. Each one has a single job\.

Its drawings list just one material: madera, Spanish for wood\.

### 3. A wide, flat base

The base plate is 38 by 31 centimetres and 3 centimetres thick, much wider than the post\. When the lectern is nudged, its weight stays above the base, so it rocks and settles back instead of falling over\.

### 4. A post sets the height

The square post is 15 centimetres thick\. Its back edge stands 102 centimetres tall, about the height of a door handle\. That puts the desk at a comfortable height for a grown\-up reading on their feet\.

### 5. Cut on a slant

Lift the desk and look: the top of the post is cut at a slant\. It drops 8\.5 centimetres from back to front, a slope of about 30 degrees\. The desk rests on that cut, so the page tilts up toward the reader's eyes\.

A tilted page lets the reader glance from their words to their listeners without bending over\.

### 6. The book ledge

Near the low edge of the desk sits a ledge 40 centimetres long\. It catches the book and holds it at the bottom of the slope\. Drag the book up the desk and let go to watch it slide back\.

### 7. Why the ledge matters

Take the ledge away and watch\. On a slope this steep, gravity can pull a book downhill harder than friction holds it, so it slides right off\. Put the ledge back and the book stays where the reader needs it\.

Friction is the grip between two surfaces that rub together\.

### 8. Cut by a computer

The thin rectangle on the front and back of the post is a groove cut by a CNC router: a spinning cutter that a computer steers along a planned path\. It holds nothing up\. It is decoration that makes a plain post look like a framed panel\.

### 9. Built to be read from

A base for steadiness, a post for height, a slanted desk for easy reading and a ledge to hold the book\. Four simple parts, each shaped for one job\. Turn it around and look for yourself\.

You can still drag the book up the desk and let it slide back\.