The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 6 letter word JOSEPH
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
J
O
S
E
P
H
More clues leading to the result JOSEPH
- Carpenter with a coat of many colours?
- Jack hopes to work for patriarch
- Jack hopes to work for old carpenter
- Saintly carpenter‘s record breaking banter
- This habit would not be adopted by Conrad, for instance
- , according to Spooner
- Mourinho’s supported by local patriarch
- The subject of a musical, opening in Jerusalem, with high hopes
- Joint money abroad returned by hotel chap
- Tease about record of Mary’s husband
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Saintly carpenter" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case saintly carpenter = joseph.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.