Rice Cake Pounding Board

Anban, also called gyeongan, is a tool used to pound steamed rice into cake or to slice rice cake. There are three type of anban: a thick, wide one made of wood with short legs attached to the bottom; a rice cake manger resembling a trough, made by hollowing out a log; and a round, wide stone board made by evening out the top. In general, it was made by attaching a short, sturdy leg to each corner of a wooden board. Its form varies by region – Gangwon Province and Hamgyeong Province used a trough-like manger made by hollowing out a log, while some part of Gyeongsang Province used a round, wide stone board with a flat top. Some wooden anban are long and narrow, with one side hollowed out for pounding steamed rice, while the other is made flat for slicing rice cake. It is mostly made of zelkova wood, but the highest-quality items generally used boxwood for rice cake mallets, and limewood for rice cake mangers.