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This quern is half of an upper stone and it would be stacked onto a lower stone of the same size. Grain was dropped through the central hole and when the upper stone was rotated, the grain was ground into flour between the stones. Rotary hand-mills and mechanical querns were used to grind a course wholemeal flour for making bread. The querns are mostly made from locally-available stone but this one is made from volcanic lava imported from the Rhineland.