quern

quern [Ar].
A hand-operated device used for grinding corn to produce flour. Querns consist of two coarse stones (quernstones), usually granite, sandstone, or a conglomerate, set one above the other and rubbed together with the corn in between. The lower stone is usually fixed and stationary while the upper stone is moved either in a rotary motion (ROTARY QUERN) or by a push–pull motion (SADDLE QUERN). Mechanical querns operated with the help of animal, water, or wind power are referred to as MILLS. See also METATE.