Air-dried and saturated cubes of fully developed wood of * 2Dichrostachys cinerea*1 and <i>Salix subserrata</i> from Swaziland were charred for 60 minutes at 400°C. The increase in moisture content caused few structural changes in <i>Salix subserrata</i>, but in * 2Dichrostachys cinerea*1 it resulted in considerable ray distension and massive deformation of non-gelatinous fibers. An attempt is made to correlate these observations with the physical and chemical changes known to occur during wood pyrolysis. The results should enchance the understanding of conditions obtained in ancient fires on archaeological sites. -- AATA