The wax is extremely hard and brittle, which makes it an excellent protection for furniture finishes. We purchase it in flakes, and combine it with beeswax and other waxes and sometimes resins, depending upon the historical project, through heating them together. Carnauba can then be applied warm, or at room temperature, depending upon the formula. Carnauba can be buffed to a high gloss and is very durable.
Pre-WWII, bowling alleys lanes and skating rinks were protected with carnauba. Like shellac, it is also used as the outer coating for many hard candies, and is used to make lipsticks stay put!
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Image of the palm courtesy of the photographer through Creative Commons on Wikipedia.
Sounds like quite a lot of uses from one palm, although they’re not native to the UK, as far as I know.