Rethinking the Traditional Classification of Hawaiian Poi Pounders

At the turn of the century W. T. Brigham described the poi pounder as "an implement very prominently identified with Polynesian life: one that had it beginnings with the race and which will perhaps be the last of ancient things to fall from the hands of the dying people" (1902:36). Indeed, traditional poi pounders continue to be used in Hawai'i even today. In fact, they are among the most celebrated Hawaiian antiquities, a symbol of strength in Hawaiian culture.