Kuʻi palaoa
Ivory medicine pounder
Elephant ivory
Hawaiian National Museum Collection
This kuʻi palaoa, or ivory pounder, is said to have belonged to Kamehameha I. While alike in shape to many stone pounders used for mashing taro and other foods, this kuʻi palaoa, made of elephant ivory, was used for medicinal purposes. Ingredients for the different medicinal remedies included items gathered from the ocean to the mountains. Fish, coral, shells, bark, roots, fruits, and leaf buds were among the many items crushed with a ku'i palaoa, and incorporated into remedies that were ingested or used topically.
Though made of imported elephant ivory, this pounder adheres to the traditional belief of holding ivory sacred and reserving its use specifically for aliʻi, or chiefs. The additional power inherent in ivory would amplify the healing powers of the medicine it was used to prepare. Along with the preparation and administration of the medicine, a kahuna lapaʻau, or medical doctor would approach the treatment of a patient with the knowledge that the illness was sent by the gods. As such, medicine was administered within a specific timeline and environment, and accompanied by the proper prayers, sacrifices, and offerings necessary to appease the gods. In the case of an aliʻi, this may have also meant the construction of a heiau, or temple, dedicated to a specific god.