Traditionally, ku‘i, or pounders, were used to mash kalo into poi and to prepare other food items and medicines. Most traditional pounders are made of close-grained basalt with vesicular basalts appearing to have been a later adaption. There are three styles of pounders: knobbed, ring and stirrup. The latter two styles were only found on the island of Kaua‘i, while the knobbed style was found throughout the rest of the island chain.
These tools were created by pecking out the general shape with a small pebble or cobble, and then smoothed using sand and grinding stones. Pounders ranged in height from less than 5 inches to more than nine inches, and weighed from 2 - 15 pounds.
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