Hornbeam

  The best european woods for burning.

  Very dense, so burns slow and hot and makes a lovely bed of glowing coals. Instant start, bright beautiful flame, no sparks.

  Densitie of dry (~20% moisture content) Hornbeam firewood are 830 kg/m3.

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hornbeam

 "...Hornbeams yield a very hard timber, giving rise to the name "ironwood". Dried heartwood billets are nearly white and     are suitable for decorative use. For general carpentry, hornbeam is rarely used, partly due to the difficulty of working it. Its         hardness has, however, lent it to use for carving boards, tool handles, handplane soles, coach wheels, piano actions, shoe lasts,   and other uses where a very tough, hard wood is required. Perhaps most interestingly as gear pegs in simple machines, including traditional windmills. It is sometimes coppiced to provide hardwood poles. It is also used in parquet flooring and for   making chess pieces..."